Overtopped

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To have been surpassed either in physical height or ranking status by another entity
2. To rise above and go beyond the upper edge or limit of something
3. Having surpassed the highest point or boundary set by a structure or measure

Etymology: "Overtopped" is the past tense and past participle of "overtop," which is built from the prefix "over-" and the noun "top." The top of anything is its highest point, and to overtop something is to rise above it, so the verb carries the literal sense of one thing standing higher than another. The prefix has a long pedigree. It descends from the Old English "ofer," which meant "above" or "beyond," and it has been attached to English verbs for over a thousand years. The "top" half is older still in the sense of a crown or summit, and English combined the two straightforwardly to create "overtop," a transparent compound whose meaning is clear from its parts. Because the word is so literal, its figurative uses grew naturally from the physical image. A tree can overtop the hedge, and a reputation or a record can overtop an earlier one, which is why the verb now serves for measures and boundaries as easily as for buildings and hills.

Synonyms: surpassed, outdone, exceeded

Antonyms: underperformed, fell short