Etymology

overleap

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Today it means: To leap over, to jump over, to cross by jumping. Full definition →

First used 8th c.Middle English overlepen ← Old English oferhlēapan
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The story

  1. Old English · inherited fromoferhlēapan
  2. Middle English · inherited fromoverlepen
  3. English todayoverleap

From Middle English overlepen, from Old English oferhlēapan. Compare Dutch overlopen (“to spill over; overflow”), German überlaufen (“to overrun; overflow”). By surface analysis, over- + leap.

First known use, by meaning

  • from 8th c. To leap over, to jump over, to cross by jumping.
  • from 10th c. To pass over; to exceed; to omit, leave out.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.