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superseded,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The success of the vaccine superseded the necessity of a smallpox hospital, and the enterprise was abandoned almost as soon as conceived.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:
All of that is a long way of saying that human judgment is going to supersede human expertise.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026
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
Department of Energy invoked the Defense Production Act to supersede state laws, following months of clashes between Sable and state regulators.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
But the US actions will "supersede" the Canadian case, Wednesday's statement said.
From Barron's ● Apr. 29, 2026
Faction customs dictate even idle behavior and supersede individual preference.
From "Divergent" by Veronica Roth
Grandi argues that the logic behind “survival, not indulgence” supersedes any emotional connections tied to the food.
From Salon ● Jan. 24, 2026
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
County counsel Dawyn R. Harrison told the supervisors the ordinance “would most likely be challenged on the supremacy clause,” which holds that federal law supersedes state and local law.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 1, 2025
But his legacy in our sport supersedes his results.
From BBC ● Jun. 11, 2025
Both volumes should be in the hands of every scholar, for neither of them supersedes the other.
From The Revision Revised by John William Burgon
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
Futures are up early Friday but premarket action has often subsequently been superseded by geopolitical headlines this week–today could be a similar story.
From Barron's ● Mar. 6, 2026
Radio’s role as kingmaker was superseded, first by streaming services and then by TikTok.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 18, 2026
The electricity it makes is expensive, its technology has been superseded, and it’s incinerating thousands of birds mid-flight each year.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 11, 2026
Between Hutton’s day and Lyell’s there arose a new geological controversy, which largely superseded, but is often confused with, the old Neptunian-Plutonian dispute.
From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson
In response, Chaudhry adjusted the priorities of his engineering team for about three months, with a focus on fixing critical and high-level vulnerabilities superseding the delivery of new functionality.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
None of these proposals grapple with the full weight of how different our new era will be from the relatively placid one it is superseding.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026
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
Two unidentified sportsbooks were named as victims of the alleged conspiracy in the original indictment, and the superseding indictment names the NBA and the Hornets as additional victims.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2026
This was superseding labour to a great extent, and much clamour was raised about this plan, and probably a large amount of real distress was produced.
From Knowledge is Power: A View of the Productive Forces of Modern Society and the Results of Labor, Capital and Skill. by Charles Knight
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