ENGLISH
REFERENCE

overhead

adv. · adj. · n.
US //ˈoʊvɝˈhɛd// over·head
  1. 1 above you (adv.)
    B1 Intermediate

    above your head or in the sky.

    in a location directly above the observer or in the sky.

    Example

    A large bird circled slowly overhead in the clear blue sky.

    Example

    The thunder rumbled directly overhead, shaking the windows of the old house and startling the residents.
  2. 2 located above (adj.)
    B1 Intermediate

    placed or happening above you.

    situated or occurring above the head or in the upper part of a space.

    Example

    The plane has large overhead bins for your carry-on luggage.

    Example

    The city replaced the old overhead power lines with underground cables to improve the aesthetic of the historic district.
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  1. 3 business costs (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Accounting

    the regular costs of running a business, like rent and electricity, that are not for specific products.

    the ongoing administrative and operational expenses of a business which cannot be attributed to any specific unit of output.

    Example

    The shop had to close because the monthly overhead was too high.

    Example

    By automating the billing process, the firm managed to reduce its administrative overhead and improve overall profitability.

    Usage

    Usually used as an uncountable noun in this sense.
    • operating costs
    • fixed costs
    • direct costs
  2. 4 computing resources (n.)
    C1 Advanced Technical Computing

    extra time or memory a computer uses to manage a task rather than doing the task itself.

    the processing time, memory, or bandwidth required to coordinate or facilitate a task rather than to perform the task itself.

    Example

    The new security software adds a lot of overhead to the system.

    Example

    The developer sought to minimize the communication overhead between the distributed servers to ensure low latency for the end users.
    • processing cost
  3. 5 nautical ceiling (n.)
    C2 Proficiency Technical Nautical

    the ceiling of a room inside a ship.

    the underside of a deck, forming the ceiling of a cabin or compartment below.

    Example

    The sailor had to duck his head to avoid hitting the overhead.

    Example

    The pipes were mounted along the overhead of the engine room to keep the walkway clear for the crew.
  4. 6 projector sheet (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Archaic

    a clear plastic sheet used to show images on a wall with a special machine.

    a transparent sheet containing text or images for use with an overhead projector.

    Example

    The teacher wrote the math problems on an overhead so the whole class could see.

    Example

    Before the era of digital presentations, speakers would often carry a folder full of hand-drawn overheads to their lectures.

    Teacher's tip

    This sense is largely obsolete in modern offices and schools due to the rise of digital projectors and screens.
Etymology 1

From Middle English owerheved, over-hed, over hede (adverb), from Old English oferhēafod (adverb), equivalent to over- + head. Compare German Low German overhoopt, överhoopt, German überhaupt. Piecewise doublet of overchief.

Etymology 2

(Sense 1) Abbreviation of overhead projector. : (Sense 2) Back-formation from overhead projector.

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