overtakeo‧ver‧take /ˌəʊvəˈteɪk $ ˌoʊvər-/ ●○○ verb (past tense overtook /-ˈtʊk/, past participle overtaken /-ˈteɪkən/) 
Verb Table Examples
He pulled out to overtake the van. Never try to overtake on a bend.2[transitive] to develop or increase more quickly than someone or something else and become more successful, more important, or more advanced than them: Television soon overtook the cinema as the most popular form of entertainment. Hingis has now overtaken her in the world tennis rankings.3[transitive] if something bad, especially a feeling, overtakes you, it happens to you suddenly and has a strong effect on you → overcomebe overtaken by something She was overtaken by emotion and started to cry. A terrible sense of panic overtook him.4be overtaken by events if you are overtaken by events, the situation changes, so that your plans or ideas are not useful anymore: The diplomatic negotiations were soon overtaken by events.
Verb TableVERB TABLE
overtake
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | overtake |
| he, she, it | overtakes | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | overtook |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have overtaken |
| he, she, it | has overtaken | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had overtaken |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will overtake |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have overtaken |
| Continuous Form | ||
| Present | I | am overtaking |
| he, she, it | is overtaking | |
| you, we, they | are overtaking | |
| Past | I, he, she, it | was overtaking |
| you, we, they | were overtaking | |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have been overtaking |
| he, she, it | has been overtaking | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had been overtaking |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will be overtaking |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have been overtaking |
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
Thesaurus- Before you start to overtake, make sure the road is clear ahead of you.
- By 1970 the U.S. had overtaken the Soviet Union in space technology.
- He was overtaken by exhaustion.
- On the way, we overtook a battered old Renault.
- Police overtook and captured the fleeing suspect.
- Some are predicting that India could overtake China as the world's most populous country before 2050.
- The Clippers played better in the second half but couldn't overtake the Rockets and lost by eight points.
- Before sleep overtook us, we reflected on our last few days' climbing.
- For example, imagine a man is traveling aboard a faster train overtaking the first on a parallel track.
- My mind has at last caught up, and indeed overtaken my body.
- Ollokot overtook them and joined a group of warriors in resisting Captain Benteen's attempt to outflank the fleeing families.
- Points West was challenged and overtaken.
- The environmental and economic implications have far overtaken the engineering.
- Two trucks overtaking one another brushed him to the side.
Longman Language Activatorto reach a higher standard than someone or something else► do better
Collocations · The British champion has completed the course in three minutes -- let's see if his Canadian rival can do better.do better than · If you are saving 5 percent of your income each year, you're doing better than most people.· Harris argued that the economy is doing better than it was five years ago.
► outdo to do better than someone you are competing with, especially because you want to prove that you are better: · Kids always try to outdo each other in attracting the teacher's attention.· Western Europe and Japan managed to outdo their American competitors in some economic areas.
► outshine written to be clearly more attractive, popular, or skilful than someone else: · The young Japanese violinist outshone every other musician at the concert.· Kelly was outstanding and outshone every other player on the field.
► outclass to perform with much greater skill or success than someone or something else: · For the third time this season, Celtic outclassed their local rivals, Rangers, last night.· There's never been a jet engine to outclass the Rolls Royce Avon.
► outstrip to do very much better than someone or something else, especially when the person or thing you are competing with used to be of the same standard: · The new magazine's circulation of 210,000 outstrips that of all of its closest competitors.· Girls are now outstripping boys in all school subjects.
► overtake to develop or increase more quickly than someone or something else and become bigger, better, or more advanced than them: · The Clippers played better in the second half but couldn't overtake the Rockets and lost by eight points.· Some are predicting that India could overtake China as the world's most populous country before 2050.
the people at a party► past if you go past someone or something, you go beside and then beyond them: walk/go/drive etc past (somebody/something): · He walked straight past her without looking at her.· Will you be going past the library on your way home?· Drivers sped past, heading for Oxford.
► by past a person: go/walk/float etc by: · I lay on the grass and watched the clouds floating by.· One woman reported seeing a man go by on a motorcycle.
► pass to go past a place or person: · I'll get you some aspirin - I pass the drugstore on the way to work.· They kept quiet until the soldiers had passed.· A big Cadillac passed us as we walked up the hill.
► overtake British to pass a moving vehicle or person because you want to get in front of them: · Before you start to overtake, make sure the road is clear ahead of you.· On the way, we overtook a battered old Renault.
WORD SETS► Transportaccelerate, verbaerodynamic, adjectiveaerodynamics, nounairfreight, nounaisle, nounarr., baggage room, nounboard, verbboarding, nounBOL, booking office, nounbrake, nounbrake, verbbrake light, nounbrake shoe, nounbreakdown clause, bulk freight, C&F, cable car, nouncable railway, nouncargo, nouncarriage, nouncarrier, nouncart, nounCFR, change, verbchange, nounchassis, nounchopper, nounCMR, compartment, nounconcourse, nounconductor, nouncongested, adjectiveconnect, verbconnection, nounconsolidator, nouncontainer, nounconveyance, nounconvoy, nouncouple, verbcoupling, nouncourier, nouncourier, verbcrash, verbcrash, nouncrew, nouncrewman, nouncruise, verbcutting, noundead reckoning, noundelivery date, departure, noundestination, noundispatch rider, noundistribution channel, diverge, verbdouble-book, verbdrop-off, noundrop-shipping, nounelevated railway, nounengine, nounengineer, nounETA, nounfare, nounfeeder, nounfirst class, nounfirst-class, adjectivefloating insurance, flow, verbFOB, FOB airport, fogbound, adjectiveFOR, fork, nounfork, verbfree of particular average, adjectivefreighter, noungangway, noungross weight, Gro t, gyroscope, nounHague Rules, nounhelmet, nounhigh-speed, adjectivehijack, verbhijack, nounhitch, verbhub airport, ICAO, intercity, adjectiveinternational airport, interstate, adjectivekph, LGV, line, nounloading, nounluge, nounluggage, nounluggage rack, nounmachine, nounmarine insurance, mileage, nounmilepost, nounmotion sickness, nounmph, mudflap, nounnavigate, verbnavigation, nounnet weight, one-way, adjectiveopen insurance, outride, verbovertake, verbpackager, nounpannier, nounpart shipment, passenger, nounpayload, nounportage, nounporter, nounpropulsion, nounramp, nounreceiving office, red-eye, nounregional airport, re-route, verbreturn, nounreturn, adjectivereverse logistics, ride, verbroller, nounround-trip, nounround-trip, adjectiveroute, nounroute, verbrun, verbrun, nounschedule, nounsecond class, nounservice, nounship, verbshipload, nounshipment, nounshipper, nounshipping, nounshuttle, nounshuttle, verbsingle, adjectivesingle, nounski, nounskid, verbskid, nounstabilizer, nounstaging post, nounstall, verbsteering wheel, nounstopping distance, nounstowage, nounsubsonic, adjectivesupersonic, adjectivesurface transport, tailwind, nountanker, nounticket, nountime machine, nountimetable, nountourist class, nountowrope, nountrack, nountrack, verbtraffic, nountranscontinental, adjectivetransfer, verbtransfer, nountransit visa, nountransportation, nountransship, travel insurance, troop carrier, nountruckload, nountunnel, nountwo-seater, nountyre, noununderway, adjectiveU-turn, nounviaduct, nounwheel, nounwheel, verbwreck, nounyaw, verbyield, verb
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES► a car passes/overtakes somebody
Word family· A small black car overtook me on my left.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB► soon· Television augmented and soon overtook the cinema as the masses' most popular form of entertainment.· These plans were soon overtaken by events.· But Burton's radicalism was soon overtaken by the inevitable favours bought him by his talents.
NOUN► car· Try that on several cars in the Escort-class, and you will sometimes watch the back of the car overtake the front.· The youngster was struck as the car overtook a lorry in Poolewe, Ross-shire, last July.· I kept control until the car had overtaken and was out of sight.· A car overtakes a parked transit.· According to police their car pulled out to overtake a caravan.
► event· But again political events were overtaking the scheme and bringing in their wake a radical reshaping of the whole programme.· This had all the makings of another long-running acrimonious dispute, when again wider political events quite unexpectedly overtook the controversy.· Like so many other things, it seemed to Celia that events had overtaken her.· So will the book, rushed into the shops as events overtook it, be a best-seller?
VERB► try· There were crescents under his eyes like bruises, and his jaw jutted out as though it were trying to overtake his nose.· The accident happened as Fogarty tried to overtake Robert Ulm on a bend during the fifth lap.· Each time he tried to overtake, one of them would signal and pull out.
WORD FAMILYnountakingsundertakingtaketakerverbtakeovertakeundertake
1[intransitive, transitive] to go past a moving vehicle or person because you are going faster than them and want to get in front of them: He pulled out to overtake the van. Never try to overtake on a bend.2[transitive] to develop or increase more quickly than someone or something else and become more successful, more important, or more advanced than them: Television soon overtook the cinema as the most popular form of entertainment. Hingis has now overtaken her in the world tennis rankings.3[transitive] if something bad, especially a feeling, overtakes you, it happens to you suddenly and has a strong effect on you → overcomebe overtaken by something She was overtaken by emotion and started to cry. A terrible sense of panic overtook him.4be overtaken by events if you are overtaken by events, the situation changes, so that your plans or ideas are not useful anymore: The diplomatic negotiations were soon overtaken by events.