overdue

Etymology

It is formed from English over- + due.^[2][3][4][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of a debt, bill or rent, unpaid after the date fixed for payment: Merriam-Webster dates this sense to 1763,^[6] the OED to 1805, in Frederick Reynolds's Blind Bargain.^[2] Etymonline dates the use of unpaid bills to 1845.^[4]

Semantic evolution

From the mid-19th century the word was used of a person, event or task that is late (about 1850), and of a ship or train that has not arrived on time (1858).^[2] In 1865 Dickens used it in Our Mutual Friend for something that has long been needed or deserved, now usual in long overdue.^[2] Library books that have not been returned in time have been overdue since 1890, when the noun overdues for such books is also recorded.^[2][4] In the 20th century it was applied to a baby not yet born by the expected date (1939) and, colloquially, to a woman whose period is late (1960).^[2][4] In criminal slang a criminal overdue for arrest is one who is ripe for it.^[7]

Timeline

• 1763 – unpaid after the proper time (Merriam-Webster).^[6]
• 1805 – of a bill or rent, remaining unpaid (OED).^[2]
• c. 1850 – of a person or event, late.^[2]
• 1858 – of a ship or train, not arrived on time.^[2]
• 1865 – needed or deserved for some time.^[2]
• 1877 – excessive, undue.^[2]
• 1890 – of a library book, not returned by the due date; noun, an overdue book.^[2][4]
• 1939 – of a baby, not born by the expected date.^[2]
• 1960 – of a woman, late in starting a menstrual period.^[2][4]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Not paid by the time fixed for payment: an overdue electricity bill.^[6][8][2]
2. Late in arriving, happening or being done: The ferry was two hours overdue.^[6][8][2]
3. Needed or wanted for a long time: The reform was long overdue.^[6][2]
4. Of a library book, not returned by the due date.^[2][6]
5. Of a baby, not yet born by the expected date; of a woman, not yet having given birth or begun a menstrual period when expected.^[2]

Noun

1. An overdue library book, usually in the plural.^[2]

Word family

• overdueness

Related words

• overdo

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
4. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
6. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
7. ^ Green, Jonathon (2010), Green's Dictionary of Slang, London: Chambers; digital ed. 2016–, https://greensdictofslang.com
8. ^ a b Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins