overriding
part of speech
adjective (overriding); also the -ing form of the verb override (override, overrides, overrode, overridden, overriding)
meaning for a pupil
1) adjective: More important than anything else: "Safety is the overriding concern." tree →
2) verb form: Cancelling or taking control of a decision, setting or machine, as in "overriding the alarm" or "overriding a rule". tree →
sense in the lessons
In formal writing and the news, "the overriding aim / concern / priority" means the most important one. In computing and machines, overriding a setting means taking manual control. In school rules, a teacher may be overriding an earlier decision. Phrases: overriding concern, overriding importance, overriding priority.
examples
- Safety is the overriding concern on a school trip. tree →
- Her overriding wish was to see her grandmother again. tree →
- The pilot was overriding the autopilot to land the plane. tree →
- Winning was not the overriding aim; having fun was. tree →
- The head teacher is overriding the old rule about phones. tree →
- Of overriding importance is that everyone gets home safely. tree →
note
"Overriding" (most important) is quite formal. The verb is irregular: override, overrode, overridden. Do not confuse with "overwriting" (writing over something, like saving over a file).
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «overriding» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.