überwiegen

Überwiegen is a German verb meaning to predominate, prevail, or outweigh. It describes a situation in which one factor, argument, or quantity is greater in importance or magnitude than another. The word combines über- (over, above) with wiegen (to weigh), drawing on the image of weighing competing elements.

In use, überwiegen expresses relative predominance rather than absolute quantity. It is common in discussions of arguments, statistics, risks, or preferences. For example: Die Vorteile überwiegen die Nachteile. Die Kosten überwiegen den Nutzen. In statistical or analytical contexts one might note that a particular share überwiegt ein anderes.

Grammatically, überwiegen is a transitive German verb that takes a direct object in the accusative case when indicating what is outweighed. The present tense forms include ich überwiege, er überwiegt, wir überwiegen. The simple past is überwog or überwogen; the perfect tense is hat überwogen. The verb belongs to the class of verbs with strong past forms and often appears in clauses that compare two sides of a question, decision, or measurement.

Etymology: from über- + wiegen, extending from literal weighing to metaphorical preponderance. The term is closely related to adjectives such as überwiegend (predominant) and to noun forms like Übergewicht (overweight) and Überlegenheit (superiority).

See also: überwiegend, Übergewicht, Überlegenheit.