over
n.n. Above or across something. You use it to show that one thing is higher than another, or that it's moving from one side to the other.
n. A preposition indicating position or movement at a higher level than something else, or extending across it from side to side.
The plane flies over the city.
He jumped over the fence to get his ball back from the neighbor's yard.
A sense of unease settled over the crowd as the sky darkened and the first drops of rain began to fall.
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *úp Proto-Indo-European *-er Proto-Indo-European *upér Proto-Germanic *uber Proto-West Germanic *obar Old English ofer Middle English over English over From Middle English over, from Old English ofer, from Proto-West Germanic obar, from Proto-Germanic uber (“over”), from Proto-Indo-European upér, related to upó. Akin to Scots ower (“over”), Yola oer, ower, owr (“over”), Saterland Frisian uur (“over”), West Frisian oer (“over, across”), Cimbrian übar (“over”), Dutch over (“over”), German ober, über, ueber (“over, above”), Limburgish euver, övver (“over”), Low German över, üöver (“over”), Luxembourgish iwwer (“over”), Mòcheno iber (“over”), Yiddish איבער (iber, “over”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål over (“over”), Faroese yvir (“over”), Icelandic yfir (“over”), Norwegian Nynorsk over, yver, yvi (“over”), Swedish över (“over”), Gothic 𐌿𐍆𐌰𐍂 (ufar, “over”), Latin super (“over, above”), Ancient Greek ὑπέρ (hupér, “over, above”), Albanian upri (“group of peasants”), Waigali var, vari, Sanskrit उपरि (upári, “over”). Doublet of uber, super, and hyper.
From Middle English over (“riverbank, seashore, brink”), from Old English ōfer (“riverbank, seashore, brink, edge, margin, border”), from Proto-Germanic *ōferaz. Cognate with Dutch oever (“riverbank, shore”), German Ufer (“shore, shoreline, riverbank”), Low German Över (“shore, riverbank”).
As a preposition of place, 'over' often implies movement ('fly over the city'), while 'above' implies a static position ('the lamp above the table'). 'Over' can also mean 'covering'.
She put a blanket on the sleeping child.She put a blanket over the sleeping child.When an object is meant to cover something else, 'over' is the correct preposition. 'On' implies simple contact with the surface.