supersede

American  

[soo-per-seed] / ˌsu pərˈsid /

verb (used with object)

superseded, superseding

1. to replace in power, authority, effectiveness, acceptance, use, etc., as by another person or thing.

2. 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   The success of the vaccine superseded the necessity of a smallpox hospital, and the enterprise was abandoned almost as soon as conceived.

   Synonyms:

   rescind, revoke, annul, overrule, void

3. to succeed to the position, function, office, etc., of; supplant.

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supersede British  

/ ˌsuːpəˈsiːdʒə, ˌsuːpəˈsiːd, ˌsuːpəˈsɛʃən /

verb

1. to take the place of (something old-fashioned or less appropriate); supplant

2. to replace in function, office, etc; succeed

3. to discard or set aside or cause to be set aside as obsolete or inferior

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Related Words

See replace.

Other Word Forms

• supersedable adjective
• supersedence noun
• superseder noun
• supersedure noun
• supersession noun
• unsuperseding adjective

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”; sit ¹

Example Sentences

Grandi argues that the logic behind “survival, not indulgence” supersedes any emotional connections tied to the food.

From Salon

Those laws often allow the state’s housing agenda to supersede preferences of the municipality.

From The Wall Street Journal

Any beneficiary designations you have set up will supersede whatever is listed in a will.

From MarketWatch

The electricity it makes is expensive, its technology has been superseded, and it’s incinerating thousands of birds mid-flight each year.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

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

Related Words

• annul
• overrule
• repudiate
• set aside
• supplant
• usurp