overlap
/ˌəʊvəˈlæp/
"overlap" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“overlap” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #11,259 in English word frequency and used as a verb.
- #11,259
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 7
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To extend over and partly cover something.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | overlap |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ˌəʊvəˈlæp/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #11,259 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 7 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “overlap” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for overlap is 7 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˌəʊvəˈlæp/. Corpus data places it at rank #11,259 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 6 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for overlap, with forms such as "oevrlap", "ovelrap", and "overalp". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 7 confusable-pair relationships, "overly", "oversaw", "overlay", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: From over- + lap. Cognate with Dutch overlap. The correct English form is overlap, spelled O-V-E-R-L-A-P.
Definition
- 1To extend over and partly cover something.
- 2To co-occur, to happen at the same time.
- 3To have an area, range, character or function in common.
- 4Of sets: to have some elements in common.
- 5To have some similar nucleotide sequences.
- 6An illusion of depth is created when one object partially covers another.
Etymology
From over- + lap. Cognate with Dutch overlap.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: oevrlap,ovelrap,overalp,overlapp,overllap,overlpa,overrlap,ovrelap,ovverlap,voerlap
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of overlap - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "overlap"?
What does "overlap" mean?
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Using “overlap”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is O-V-E-R-L-A-P - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˌəʊvəˈlæp/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “overly” - see the side-by-side comparison. overlap vs overly
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.