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surmount

 - 3 dictionary results

sur⋅mount

  [ser-mount]
Use surmount in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to mount upon; get on the top of; mount upon and cross over: to surmount a hill.
2. to get over or across (barriers, obstacles, etc.).
3. to prevail over: to surmount tremendous difficulties.
4. to be on top of or above: a statue surmounting a pillar.
5. to furnish with something placed on top or above: to surmount a tower with a spire.
6. Obsolete.
a. to surpass in excellence.
b. to exceed in amount.
Origin:
1325–75; ME surmounten < AF surmounter, MF. See sur- 1 , mount 1

Related forms:
sur⋅mount⋅a⋅ble, adjective
sur⋅mount⋅a⋅ble⋅ness, noun
sur⋅mount⋅er, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To surmount
sur·mount   (sər-mount')   
tr.v.   sur·mount·ed, sur·mount·ing, sur·mounts

  1. To overcome (an obstacle, for example); conquer.

  2. To ascend to the top of; climb.

    1. To place something above; top.

    2. To be above or on top of: The church steeple surmounts the square.

  4. Obsolete To surpass or exceed in amount.


[Middle English surmonten, from Old French surmonter : sur-, sur- + monter, to mount; see mount1.]
sur·mount'a·ble adj., sur·mount'er n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

surmount 
c.1369, "to rise above, go beyond," from O.Fr. surmounter "rise above," from sur- "beyond" + monter "to go up" (see mount (v.)). Meaning "to prevail over, overcome" is recorded from 1390.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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