Overleaping

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To leap over an object or an idea with enthusiasm To go beyond a set threshold in physical or metaphorical terms To spring past a barrier or to exceed conventional norms
2. To jump or spring beyond an obstacle or object ; to go beyond a certain limit or boundary, either physically or figuratively
3. To vault over a physical barrier or hurdle ; to surpass a set measure, rule, or extent in action or thought

Etymology: "Overleaping" is simply the present participle and gerund of "overleap," so its story is really the story of the verb. That verb descends from Old English "oferhlēapan," a compound of "ofer" (over) and "hlēapan" (to leap), and it passed into Middle English as "overlepen." The shape of the word has barely changed across roughly a thousand years of English, even as its uses have spread. The sense of crossing a barrier by jumping is the oldest and most literal, and the figurative sense of going beyond a limit, a rule, or an expected measure grew naturally out of it: a leap that clears a fence can equally clear a boundary of custom or reason. Dutch "overlopen" and German "überlaufen" share the same construction, though their meanings have drifted toward spilling and overrunning, which shows how one picture of going over something can branch in several directions.

Synonyms: jumping, vaulting, leaping

Antonyms: falling, dropping