overlay
/ˌoʊvɚˈleɪ/verb, noun
overlay is spelled O-V-E-R-L-A-Y: 7 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 1.7 times per million words in written English, the 21,209th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, overlay means “To lay, spread, or apply (something) over or across (something else); to overspread” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in overlay?
| Letters | 7: O-V-E-R-L-A-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.7 times per million words; the 21,209th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is overlay?
Overlay appears 1.7 times per million words in written English, the 21,209th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce overlay?
- UK /ˌəʊ.vəˈleɪ/
- US /ˌoʊvɚˈleɪ/
As a noun (“An image to be overlaid on another; a superimposition or…”): /ˈəʊ.vəˌleɪ/, /ˈoʊvɚˌleɪ/.
Overlay has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-overlay_(verb).wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-overlay_(noun).wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with overlay?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as overlay from its last stressed vowel (/eɪ/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: layover.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of overlay
- overlays present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- overlaying participle, present
- overlaid participle, past
- overlayed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does overlay mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To lay, spread, or apply (something) over or across (something else); to overspread.
Near-synonyms: cover, superimpose, superpose
- 2
To overwhelm; to press excessively upon.
- 3
archaicTo lie over (someone, especially a child) in order to smother it; to suffocate.
- 4
To put an overlay on.
- 5
To bet too much money on.
- 6
simple past of overlie
noun
- 1
An image to be overlaid on another; a superimposition or diapositive.
- 2
A piece of paper pasted upon the tympan sheet to improve the impression by making it stronger at a particular place.
- 3
Odds which are set higher than expected or warranted. Favorable odds.
- 4
A horse going off at higher odds than it appears to warrant, based on its past performances.
- 5
A decal attached to a computer keyboard to relabel the keys.
- 6
A block of program code that is loaded over something previously loaded, so as to replace the functionality.
- 7
A pop-up covering an existing part of the display.
- 8
ScotlandA cravat.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Overlay in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense to lay, or [[spread]], something over or across; to [[cover]]:
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does overlay come from?
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.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).