as in intersecting
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as in overlying
to lie over parts of one another
the brochures on the display table should overlap but not so much that the titles are obscured
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Recent Examples of overlapping
Maria Balaska, Time, 20 Dec. 2025
Art De Roché, New York Times, 9 Feb. 2026
Start by laying sheets of cardboard on the ground, overlapping the edges to block out sunlight from reaching weed seeds.
—Patricia Shannon, Southern Living, 9 Feb. 2026
Her reelection bid comes after a first term defined by a series of overlapping crises, including homelessness, the immigration enforcement raids, public safety concerns, and the Palisades fire that erupted last January, killing 12 people and destroying thousands of homes.
—Teresa Liu, Daily News, 7 Feb. 2026
Fashion’s never been busier with the Copenhagen fall 2026 ready-to-wear overlapping with spring 2026 couture season—one that saw the couture debuts of Jonathan Anderson at Christian Dior, Matthieu Blazy at Chanel, and Silvana Armani at Armani Privé.
—Laird Borrelli-Persson, Vogue, 6 Feb. 2026
The previous approach to vaccine development and post-market evaluation depended on joint oversight by the FDA and the CDC, combined with a federated network of health systems and insurers that allowed overlapping evaluation of outcomes.
—Robert M. Califf, STAT, 6 Feb. 2026
In the background, overlapping hills reveal a glimpse of ocean on the horizon.
—Hazlitt, 4 Feb. 2026
There are weak patches, but the four actors (Wilde, MVP Seth Rogen, Edward Norton and Penélope Cruz) keep it buoyant, with a crackling energy that makes the endless streams of overlapping talk play like jazz.
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 31 Jan. 2026
However, this interjection increases the probability of overlapping or even conflicting instructions to vendors.
—Kelly G. Richardson, Oc Register, 30 Jan. 2026
Adjective
In the 1800s, for example, the German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel used the term Zeitgeist—the spirit of times—to refer to such ubiquitous and overlapping influences that operate across both macro and micro levels.
—Maria Balaska, Time, 20 Dec. 2025
Verb
Finding space elsewhere helped in both matches against Sunderland, with an overlapping run from Riccardo Calafiori creating space for Trossard away from home.
—Art De Roché, New York Times, 9 Feb. 2026
Start by laying sheets of cardboard on the ground, overlapping the edges to block out sunlight from reaching weed seeds.
—Patricia Shannon, Southern Living, 9 Feb. 2026
Her reelection bid comes after a first term defined by a series of overlapping crises, including homelessness, the immigration enforcement raids, public safety concerns, and the Palisades fire that erupted last January, killing 12 people and destroying thousands of homes.
—Teresa Liu, Daily News, 7 Feb. 2026
Fashion’s never been busier with the Copenhagen fall 2026 ready-to-wear overlapping with spring 2026 couture season—one that saw the couture debuts of Jonathan Anderson at Christian Dior, Matthieu Blazy at Chanel, and Silvana Armani at Armani Privé.
—Laird Borrelli-Persson, Vogue, 6 Feb. 2026
The previous approach to vaccine development and post-market evaluation depended on joint oversight by the FDA and the CDC, combined with a federated network of health systems and insurers that allowed overlapping evaluation of outcomes.
—Robert M. Califf, STAT, 6 Feb. 2026
In the background, overlapping hills reveal a glimpse of ocean on the horizon.
—Hazlitt, 4 Feb. 2026
There are weak patches, but the four actors (Wilde, MVP Seth Rogen, Edward Norton and Penélope Cruz) keep it buoyant, with a crackling energy that makes the endless streams of overlapping talk play like jazz.
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 31 Jan. 2026
However, this interjection increases the probability of overlapping or even conflicting instructions to vendors.
—Kelly G. Richardson, Oc Register, 30 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overlapping
Adjective
-
Production is currently underway on director Sam Mendes’ upcoming intersecting films on The Beatles.—
Tommy McArdle,
PEOPLE,
30 Jan. 2026
-
Spanning 13 tracks, the album navigates the complexities of the human experience through the intersecting lenses of technology and nature.—
Lucia Cheng,
Des Moines Register,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
However, those sea surface temperatures will be far warmer than the overlying air temperatures.—
Marshall Shepherd,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
-
But clever techniques can work around this limitation, including adaptive optics, which rapidly reshapes a mirror in the telescope to counter the motion of overlying air.—
Phil Plait,
Scientific American,
27 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Framing perfectly normal facial swelling as evidence of an underlying health problem is, at best, disingenuous.—
Georgia Casey,
Allure,
6 Feb. 2026
-
And a third is that there may be similar underlying risk factors.—
Katia Hetter,
CNN Money,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
In winter, the frothy surf turns to soft, lapping waves and camels lumber down the mountain for a dip.—
Anna Zacharias,
Condé Nast Traveler,
21 Jan. 2026
-
The Kohala Coast is living proof that nature is medicine, from the birdsong to the Tradewinds rustling the coconut palms to the deep blue-green waters of the Pacific lapping the shoreline.—
Everett Potter,
Forbes.com,
18 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Again, the superposed vector can be decomposed into its constituents.—
Anil Ananthaswamy,
Quanta Magazine,
13 Apr. 2023
-
Like entanglement, the superposed states essential to its power are fragile, collapsing when measured or otherwise perturbed by the outside world.—
Gabriel Popkin,
Science | AAAS,
3 June 2021
Verb
-
As music played in the background, overlaying captions appeared on screen beside Bader, 30, who underwent bariatric surgery in December 2023.—
Zoey Lyttle,
PEOPLE,
3 Feb. 2026
-
Trying to tap the ice sheet, which covers 80 percent of Greenland, for minerals is unappealing, given that all the necessary supplies would need to be brought inland by helicopter and there are kilometers of ice overlaying parts of the rock.—
Stephanie Pappas,
Scientific American,
23 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
This one being of post-war emancipation, when the convergent forces of wanting to achieve a sun tan and wanting to show some skin became newly acceptable among socially progressive young people.—
Daniel Rodgers,
Vogue,
28 Dec. 2025
-
The winter conditions also change significantly along this 145-mile stretch, beginning with freezing temperatures in Bellingham, snow accumulation in the Skagit Valley’s convergent zone and rain throughout the greater Seattle area, often with heavy accumulations that can cause on-road flooding.—
Crai S Bower,
Outside,
18 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Overlapping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overlapping. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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