Overlapped

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To occupy the same area or period partially while sharing some aspects or characteristics To have different elements coincide or interact with each other in certain ways To extend over distinct features or categories in a manner where they intersect or blend
2. To cover part of the same area as another object or space ; to occur during the same time frame as another event or period ; to share features or influence each other in some way
3. To extend over or cover sections that coincide partly with something else ; to happen at the same moment or within matching intervals ; to involve interaction or common aspects between different parts

Etymology: "Overlapped" is the past tense and past participle of "overlap," so it describes the action of one thing lying partly over another. The verb is built from "over" and "lap," and the "lap" part carries the older sense of the pair. In the sense of a flap or fold of cloth lying over something, "lap" goes back to Old English, where it meant the loose fold of a garment, and the same idea of one edge folding over another gave the English verb "to lap," meaning to wrap or fold around. Putting "over" in front produced a verb for one surface extending across and covering part of another. The verb is closely related to Dutch "overlap," which shows the compound was formed in similar ways in both languages. Its meaning developed from the physical sense of two edges or surfaces covering the same space to the figurative sense of two ideas, time periods or responsibilities covering the same ground, which is how the word is most often used today.

Synonyms: intertwined, overlapped, superimposed, overlaid, conjoined

Antonyms: separated, divided, disjointed, disconnected, isolated