overlay
nounUK /ˈəʊ.vəˌleɪ/ · US /ˈoʊvɚˌleɪ/
Etymology From Middle English overleyen, from Old English oferleċġan, from Proto-West Germanic *obarlaggjan, from Proto-Germanic *uberlagjaną, equivalent to over- + lay. Cognate with Saterland Frisian uurläze, úurlääse, Dutch overleggen, German Low German overleggen, överleggen, German überlegen, Swedish överlägga, Norwegian overlegge. Compare overlie.
9 senses
- 1An image to be overlaid on another; a superimposition or…
- 2A piece of paper pasted upon the tympan sheet to improve…
- 3Odds which are set higher than expected or warranted.…
- 4A horse going off at higher odds than it appears to…
- 5A decal attached to a computer keyboard to relabel the keys.
- 6A block of program code that is loaded over something…
- 7A pop-up covering an existing part of the display.
- 8A cravat.
- 9A covering over something else.
Arts, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Photography An image to be overlaid on another; a superimposition or diapositive.
Media, Printing, Publishing A piece of paper pasted upon the tympan sheet to improve the impression by making it stronger at a particular place.
Hobbies, Horse racing, Horseracing, Horses, Lifestyle, Pets, Racing, Sports A horse going off at higher odds than it appears to warrant, based on its past performances.
A decal attached to a computer keyboard to relabel the keys.
- The keyboard overlay can be a memory jogger and a great help with spelling. In this way the keyboard makes word processing more accessible to younger as well as special needs children.1994, Roger Frost, The IT in Secondary Science Book, page 56:
Computing, Engineering, Mathematics, Natural sciences, Physical sciences, Programming, Sciences A block of program code that is loaded over something previously loaded, so as to replace the functionality.
- This concept can be extended further by allowing a primary overlay to call a secondary overlay, and so on. However, we will limit ourselves here to the use of primary overlays. Before proceeding further, you need to understand the memory map of the computer, which is a diagram showing the use to which the memory of the computer is put.1986, Noel M. Morris, Computer Graphics and CAD Fundamentals: BBC Micro Version:
Internet A pop-up covering an existing part of the display.
Scotland A cravat.
A covering over something else.
- The first, on January 1, 1883, was attributed to the overlay becoming surcharged with water, due to insufficient drainage, and causing a slip.1943 March and April, “A British Avalanche Shelter”, in Railway Magazine, page 80:
- I really appreciate the clear explication of Dworkin's understanding of male sexuality. In this we see, without the overlay of polemic that infuses her non-fiction, how Dworkin can proceed from basic feminist principles to create an almost seamless, sophistic argument for sexism.1980 August 2, George Whitmore, “Dworkin”, in Gay Community News, page 5:
1 more example
- ECDP [East Coast Digital Programme] started with the Northern City Line, where trains are already being signalled over four miles with ETCS as an overlay on conventional signalling. This means that the colour light signals remain in place and are operational, but any Class 717 that runs onto the route with a driver trained in ETCS must run in that mode. Drivers yet to be trained work as usual. […] With ETCS installed as an overlay, drivers can use trackside or cab signalling according to their competence.2024 May 29, Philip Haigh, “The digital revolution and the switch to in-cab signalling”, in RAIL, number 1010, pages 29, 31:
- Derived terms
- currency overlay, overlay scrollbar
- Related terms
- veneer