overweight English · revision 39916

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=derivation|attested=1552, R. Huloet, Abcedarium Anglico Latinum}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /ˌoʊvɚˈweɪt/, /ˈoʊvɚweɪt/^(Wiktionary)

+ * UK: /ˌəʊvəˈweɪt/, /ˈəʊvəweɪt/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ The noun and the adjective are formed from [[over-]] and the noun [[weight]], and the verb from ''over-'' and the verb ''weight''.^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024)^(Dictionary.com 2016) The OED compares [[dum|overwicht]] (modern [[m|nl|overwicht|t=overbalance]]), [[gml|ȫverwicht|t=excess weight]] and [[m|da|overvægt|t=excess weight, predominance]].^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ As a noun, weight beyond what is specified, allowed or suitable: 1552, in Richard Huloet's ''Abcedarium Anglico Latinum'';^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024) Dictionary.com dates it to 1545–55.^(Dictionary.com 2016)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ By about 1577 the noun also meant too great a weight, now mostly figuratively,^(OED 2026) and between 1626 and 1889 it meant greater weight than something else, preponderance: Johnson (1755) gave only this sense, quoting Bacon's "sinking into water is but an overweight of the body".^(OED 2026)^(Johnson 1755) The excess-weight sense now survives mainly in horse racing, of weight carried above what the handicap demands.^(OED 2026) The adjective "too heavy", of things, is recorded from 1621 in Thomas Mun's ''Discourse of Trade'',^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024) 1638 in the Collegiate and the 1630s in Etymonline;^(MW Collegiate)^(Etymonline) of people it dates from 1899, in a medical journal, as does the noun for an overweight person.^(OED 2026) The noun for the condition, obesity, followed in 1917.^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline) The verb, to give too much weight to, is recorded from 1613 in Florio's Montaigne (1603 in the Collegiate),^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024)^(MW Collegiate) and "to overload" from 1811.^(OED 2026) In finance, from 1978, a fund or investor is ''overweight'' in a sector it holds more of than its share of the market.^(OED 2026)^(Collins 2023) In the Northumberland and Durham coal trade the ''overweight'' was the excess of the average weight over the standard weight in a fortnight, and in North Yorkshire the verb meant to overload.^(Wright 1898)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1552 – noun, weight beyond what is allowed.^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024)

+ * a1577 – noun, too great a weight.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1613 – verb, to give too much weight to.^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024)

+ * 1621 – adjective, too heavy.^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024)

+ * 1626 – noun, preponderance (obsolete by 1889).^(OED 2026)

+ * 1811 – verb, to overload.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1899 – adjective, of a person: heavier than is healthy; noun, an overweight person.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1917 – noun, obesity.^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1978 – (finance) holding a disproportionate share of a sector.^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Of a person: weighing more than is normal or healthy for one's height and build; too [[fat]].^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)^(OED 2026)

+ # Of a thing: heavier than is allowed or usual: ''The airline charged extra for overweight suitcases.''^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)

+ # ([[finance]]) Holding more of a particular kind of [[investment]] than its share of the market would suggest.^(Collins 2023)^(OED 2026)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # Weight beyond what is required or allowed; extra weight.^(MWU 2024)^(OED 2026)

+ # The condition of being overweight; [[obesity]].^(OED 2026)^(AHD 2024)

+ # A person who is overweight.^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To give too much weight or importance to: ''The report overweights recent events.''^(MWU 2024)^(OED 2026)

+ # To put too much weight on; to [[overload]].^(MWU 2024)^(OED 2026)

+ # (finance) To invest more heavily in a particular sector than its share of the market.^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[underweight]]

+ * [[overbalance]]

+ * [[preponderance]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}