overcome

Overcome is a verb that denotes succeeding in dealing with or defeating something that hinders progress, such as a problem, obstacle, or opponent. It can also describe being overwhelmed by a force or emotion, usually in a passive construction: “She was overcome by grief.” The principal forms are overcome (base form and past participle), overcame (simple past), and overcoming (present participle).

Etymology: The word traces to Old English and Germanic roots combining over- and come, originally meaning “to come over” or “to pass beyond” and by the Middle English period acquiring the sense “to prevail over” or “to conquer.”

Usage and nuance: Common collocations include overcome an obstacle, overcome difficulties, overcome fear, overcome addiction, overcome illness, and overcome adversity. “Overcome with” expresses strong emotion, as in “overcome with joy.” The term is often contrasted with get over, which more typically denotes recovery or acceptance rather than active conquest. In passive constructions, overcome can describe a person or thing overwhelmed by something: “The hikers were overcome by heat and exhaustion.” Synonyms include conquer, surmount, prevail over, defeat, and weather. In everyday language, overcome also appears in the noun form overcoming as in “Overcoming adversity” or “the overcoming of obstacles.”