supersede
Americanverb (used with object)
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supersedes,
present (3rd person singular)
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superseded,
past participle, past
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superseding
present participle
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to replace in power, authority, effectiveness, acceptance, use, etc., as by another person or thing.
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to set aside or cause to be set aside as void, useless, irrelevant, or obsolete, usually in consideration of something mentioned.
The success of the vaccine superseded the necessity of a smallpox hospital, and the enterprise was abandoned almost as soon as conceived.
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to succeed to the position, function, office, etc., of; supplant.
verb
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to take the place of (something old-fashioned or less appropriate); supplant
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to replace in function, office, etc; succeed
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to discard or set aside or cause to be set aside as obsolete or inferior
Synonym Usage
See replace.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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supersedencenoun
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supersedernoun
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supersedurenoun
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supersessionnoun
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supersedableadjective
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unsupersedingadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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supersedesimple
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supersedessimple
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have supersededperfect
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has supersededperfect
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am supersedingprogressive
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are supersedingprogressive
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is supersedingprogressive
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have been supersedingperfect progressive
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has been supersedingperfect progressive
Past
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supersededsimple
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had supersededperfect
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was supersedingprogressive
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were supersedingprogressive
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had been supersedingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of supersede
First recorded in 1485–95; from Latin supersedēre “to sit above or upon, forbear,” equivalent to super- super- + sedēre “to sit”; see sit 1
Explanation
When something supersedes, it takes the place of something else. The 5th edition of your history textbook supersedes the 4th edition. Most words that include super have something good going on. Supersede is from the 16th-century Latin for "sit on top," and it often means to replace with something better. A version 10 of a computer game will supersede, version 9, making it more exciting. Unfortunately, a person might be replaced too, as in "the younger running back will supersede the veteran player as he gets older." To supersede is generally a good thing, but being superseded is not always that great for the replaced person.
Vocabulary lists containing supersede
Grade 10, List 1
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ASVAB Word Knowledge
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Power Prefix: super-
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
A mistake many people make, Bobby says, is thinking that really, really liking someone should supersede whatever challenges they might face.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
He warned that the punitive penalties would be applied immediately and would completely "supersede" any existing bilateral trade agreements.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
But the US actions will "supersede" the Canadian case, Wednesday's statement said.
From Barron's ● Apr. 29, 2026
Those laws often allow the state’s housing agenda to supersede preferences of the municipality.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 18, 2026
Faction customs dictate even idle behavior and supersede individual preference.
From "Divergent" by Veronica Roth
District Judge Rodney Smith, a Trump appointee, said that the Epstein Files Transparency Act supersedes the normal bar on making the materials public.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 5, 2025
Like all service members, he has an obligation to the Constitution and the rule of law that supersedes following the orders of superiors.
From Slate ● Jan. 15, 2025
The Webb certainly supersedes Hubble in every respect.
From Salon ● Dec. 10, 2024
A spokesperson said: “The latest walking route assessment takes account of the most up to date information relating to the locality and supersedes an historical assessment.”
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2024
The Will to Live holds man's one chance of this-worldly bliss, and supersedes any care for the remote felicities of any problematic future state.
From Prophets of Dissent : Essays on Maeterlinck, Strindberg, Nietzsche and Tolstoy by Otto Heller
Parton was an icon whose music, philanthropy and authenticity superseded genre, class, sexuality, color and politics.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
Liggett Group LLC, where the court agreed in part with the tobacco industry that the congressionally mandated surgeon general’s warning about cigarettes already superseded any state-based failure-to-warn claim.
From Slate ● Jun. 25, 2026
The fund superseded the Household Support Fund which was set up in response to the cost of living crisis, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.
From BBC ● Jun. 11, 2026
Our yearning to forget is superseded by our desire to understand why things are the way they are.
From Salon ● May 25, 2026
That is, they still used stone tools similar to those superseded in Europe by metal tools thousands of years ago, and they dwelt in villages not organized under any centralized political authority.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
Pogacar's victory means he is positioned by many as the greatest cyclist of all time, superseding the achievements and status of Belgian legend Merckx.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
The plasticity of digital information is superseding earlier modes of expression and expertise, as the printing press did the scribe.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 5, 2025
Before Chutkan set a briefing schedule, Smith obtained a superseding indictment, paring down the charges to remove allegations the Supreme Court held were absolutely immune.
From Slate ● Oct. 18, 2024
The superseding document amends and replaces the original indictment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2024
A new manager, Major Weyns, appeared, who represented the new régime, superseding M. Lévêque, who had sold the permits in the name of the original company.
From The Crime of the Congo by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
