Overshade

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To provide an excessive amount of shade that blocks light beyond what is necessary
2. To obscure or overshadow by casting too much shadow or cover
3. To cover something with more shade than needed, reducing its brightness greatly

Etymology: Overshade is about as transparent as English compounds get: the prefix "over-" (meaning excessively, or from above) joined to "shade." The verb describes casting so much shadow over something that its brightness is greatly reduced. Here the prefix works in its ordinary sense of excess, so the word needs no special story beyond that. The "shade" half carries the older history. It descends from Old English "sceadu," a word for the dimness that falls where an object blocks light, and it is closely tied to the idea of a shadowy form or a protected place, as in the sense of shelter from the sun. English then extended it to the shading of pictures and to ghostly figures, which is why "shade" can also mean a spirit.

Synonyms: overshadow, darken, shroud

Antonyms: illuminate, brighten