overhead1 adverboverhead2 noun
overheado‧ver‧head1 /ˌəʊvəˈhed◂ $ ˌoʊvər-/ ●●○ adverb 
ExamplesEXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
Thesaurus- A flock of birds passed overhead.
- Helicopter gunships hovered overhead.
- Suddenly, they heard the rumble of thunder overhead.
- A star signaled overhead and he saw it.
- From the two cross-beams overhead, hung chains, adjustable in length, to which the ropes would be attached.
- Guns still rumbled in the distance, a plane droned overhead.
- The thatched pyramid roofs reached almost to the ground and rose to points twenty feet overhead.
- The top floor directly overhead had been abandoned for years.
- They can even be frightened by wild birds flying overhead, which they mistakenly think are predators.
Longman Language Activatora number or amount that is approximately right► above
Collocations · There was a light above the table.· Above his bed is a picture of two old men sitting on a park bench.· During my last year of college, I lived in a little apartment above a grocery store.directly above · We looked up and saw a helicopter hovering directly above us.the floor/apartment above (=above where you are) · We could hear noises in the room above.from above (=seen from above) · The light came from above them and to their right.above sea level (=used when describing how high a place is) · Mexico City is 2400 metres above sea level.
► over directly above something or moving in the air above it: · The sign over the door said 'Employees Only'.· A thick layer of smoke hung over the city.· About 400 fans jumped over barricades and invaded the playing field.· As the planes flew over, Selim could see the Russian markings on their wings.· Riot police fired over the heads of the demonstrators.
► overhead in the sky directly above your head: · A flock of birds passed overhead.· Suddenly, they heard the rumble of thunder overhead.
► up: up in/on/there etc in a higher position than where you are: · I found some old pictures of my mother up in the attic.· Are you able to see up there or do you need a flashlight?
► upstairs on a higher floor of a building, above where you are: · The bathroom is upstairs on your left.· Don't you think the woman upstairs is kind of strange?
► overhang if something such as a tree or a rock overhangs something, it sticks out over it: · The bird was sitting on a branch overhanging the water.· An ancient vine overhangs the terrace.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES► an overhead cable
Word family (=attached to high posts)· Overhead cables can be dangerous for birds.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSVERB► fly· A plane flew overhead, an ad for Coppertone trailing behind on a banner.· They can even be frightened by wild birds flying overhead, which they mistakenly think are predators.· Looking up to the blue sky, she watched the many birds flying overhead, chattering and screaming as they passed out of sight.· A seagull flew overhead, followed by another.· Ringed plovers pattered at the water's edge of a muddy creek and a whimbrel whistled as it flew overhead.· Three B-52 Stratofortresses flew overhead, from the west towards the eastern stars.· I live in Sevenoaks and on a nice sunny day have several light aircraft flying overhead.
► pass· From southern latitudes, where Sagittarius can pass overhead, there is plenty to see.
WORD FAMILYnounheadheadingoverheadheaderheadshipadjectiveoverheadheadyheadlessheadedverbheadbeheadadverboverhead
above your head or in the sky: 
Bullets whizzed overhead. A plane flew overhead.—overhead adjective: overhead wiresoverhead1 adverboverhead2 noun
overheado‧ver‧head2 /ˈəʊvəhed $ ˈoʊvər-/ noun ExamplesEXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
word sets- Working out of my home had significantly lowered my overhead.
- There are overheads when defining and manipulating hierarchies, and this is particularly apparent when comparisons are made with the relational approach.
- They will cut office overheads by startling amounts and be the new cost leaders.
WORD SETS► Basics
Collocationsadmin, nounadministration, nounadministrative, adjectiveadministrator, nounagency, nounagent, nounbalance sheet, nounbazaar, nounbid, nounbid, verbbig business, nounbook value, nounboss, nounbottom line, nounbranch, nouncapacity, nouncapital, nouncapital assets, nouncapital gains, nouncapital goods, nouncapital-intensive, adjectivecapitalist, nouncard, nouncentralize, verbcompetitiveness, nounconsultancy, nouncontract, nouncontract, verbcost-effective, adjectivecoupon, nouncritical path, noundecentralize, verbdeveloper, noundistiller, noundistributor, noundiversify, verbdownsize, verbeconomics, nounenterprise, nounentrepreneur, nounestablishment, nounfashion, nounfly-by-night, adjectivefold, verbfoodstuff, nounform letter, nounfranchise, verbfranchisee, noungazump, verbgearing, noungeneric, adjectiveget, verbhard sell, nounhaute couture, nounhigh season, nounhigh technology, nounhike, nounhike, verbloss, nounlow-tech, adjectivemaximize, verbMD, nounmerchandise, verbmerchandising, nounmerger, nounmiddleman, nounmiller, nounmission statement, nounmom-and-pop, adjectivemoneygrabbing, adjectivemoneymaker, noun-monger, suffixmonopolistic, adjectivemonopoly, nounnet, adjectivenet, verbniche, nounoff-the-peg, adjectiveopening time, nounoperation, nounoperational, adjectiveoperator, nounoption, nounoutlay, nounoutlet, nounoutput, nounoutwork, nounoverhead, nounoverstock, verbpackage, nounpartner, nounpartnership, nounpatent, nounpayola, nounpercentage, nounpiracy, nounpremium, nounprivate practice, nounprivatization, nounprivatize, verbprofitability, nounproprietor, nounproprietress, nounpurchase price, nounpurchasing power, nounquiet, adjectiveR & D, nounrate of return, nounrecall, verbreject, nounrep, nounresearch and development, nounrestrictive practices, nounrevenue, nounsell, verbservice industry, nounsleeping partner, nounspeculate, verbspeculation, nounspeculative, adjectivestreet value, nounsubtotal, nounswap meet, nounsweatshop, nounsyndicate, nounsystems analyst, nountake, nountender, nountie-up, nounTM, transact, verbtransaction, nounturnover, nounundersell, verbuneconomic, adjectiveunit, noununprofitable, adjectivevideo conferencing, nounwatchdog, nounwheeler-dealer, nounwheeling and dealing, noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES► an overhead cable
Word family (=attached to high posts)· Overhead cables can be dangerous for birds.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADJECTIVE► administrative· In all kinds of ways many bad old practices disappeared, while at last the central administrative overhead came under control.· You can share office space with them and all the administrative overhead.
► high· Meanwhile, high overhead, an eagle soared, clutching a tortoise in its talons.· But the picture is one of sluggish sales and high overheads.· A pair of ravens circles high overhead, making a few soft grunting sounds.· But in areas such as Oxfordshire dentists have high overheads.· I heard croaking and glanced up to see six ravens in three pairs flying high overhead toward the east.· Tree branches met high overhead, creating a wavering green canopy through which sunlight fell in shadows and coins of light.· The moon was high overhead - a bright, full moon that seemed to float in the dark mirror of the water.
► low· Possibly cheaper, by reducing number of managers needed and so lower cost of overheads. 5.· The majority of new albums came from independent labels, where lower overhead lowers the break-even point.· In both contract races Hunslet benefited greatly from its low overheads.· Weak authentication with low maintenance overhead and without patent or export restrictions.· Advantages: Low overheads, so likely to offer competitive prices.· Even tiny firms of six men in dingy offices with low overheads were able to compete by slashing prices to the bone.· One fighter flying low overhead can ruin a whole day's work.· Oyston was now moving across into the media, using the same formula of low overheads, tight management and aggressive advertising.
NOUN► costs· Remaining debts related to trade creditors and overhead costs.· In the past two years, the company has laid off at least 1, 500 employees to cut overhead costs.· PolyGram and Universal founded Gramercy in 1992, sharing the overhead costs of movie distribution.· Under the new approach, overhead costs are tied directly to products or services and costs are reported for specific business activities.
► projector· Manion turned on the overhead projector and put a new graphic on it.· Manion turned off the overhead projector and took a few minutes to answer questions from the students.· Manion walked back to the table next to the overhead projector.
VERB► cover· On top of that a percentage is added to cover the chemists' overheads and profit.· It receives a substantial recurrent grant from the University, which covers its operational overheads.· After each period a charge is made to the receiving division to cover overheads and profit.· Jean Downie advised a 10% addition to cover overheads.· The second is their enormous libraries of films, which usually produce enough money to cover their overheads.
► reduce· The bank says it has turned the cost centre into a business in an attempt reduce overheads.· Likewise, if new communities choose other, less-costly service providers, will Pima County then reduce overhead and taxes proportionately?· Hence other methods were tried in order to reduce the memory overheads, and comparisons were made across a number of different methods.· As pressure on prices has increased, pharmacies have sought to enhance their buying power and reduce overhead expenses by growing larger.· We will increase emphasis on cost consciousness throughout the Group and continue to reduce overheads throughout 1993.· And no matter how you looked at it, that meant reducing the operating overhead at each store.· The idea of this joint venture is to reduce overheads and the whole set-up is run by a staff of just seven.· Increasingly, even corporate giants are turning to telecommuting as a way to reduce overhead.
WORD FAMILYnounheadheadingoverheadheaderheadshipadjectiveoverheadheadyheadlessheadedverbheadbeheadadverboverhead
1[uncountable] American English, overheads British English [plural] money spent regularly on rent, insurance, electricity, and other things that are needed to keep a business operating: Their offices are in London so the overheads are very high.2[countable] a piece of transparent material used with an overhead projector to show words, pictures etc