overcast

English

Etymology

From Middle English overcasten, equivalent to over- +‎ cast. Compare Swedish överkast.

Pronunciation

Adjective and noun

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: ōʹvə-käst', IPA^(key): /ˈəʊvəˌkɑːst/

  • Audio (UK):

    (file)

• (General American) enPR: ōʹvər-kăst', IPA^(key): /ˈoʊvɚ.kæst/

Verb

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: ō'və-kästʹ, IPA^(key): /ˌəʊvəˈkɑːst/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (General American) enPR: ō'vər-kăstʹ, IPA^(key): /ˌoʊvɚˈkæst/
• Rhymes: -ɑːst

Noun

overcast (plural overcasts)

1. A cloud covering all of the sky from horizon to horizon.
2. (obsolete) An outcast.

Adjective

overcast (comparative more overcast, superlative most overcast)

1. Covered with clouds; overshadowed; darkened; (meteorology) more than 90% covered by clouds.
   • 1712 (date written), [Joseph] Addison, Cato, a Tragedy. […], London: […] J[acob] Tonson, […], published 1713, →OCLC, Act I, scene i, page 1:

     The Dawn is over-caſt, the Morning low’rs,
     And heavily in Clouds brings on the Day, […]

2. (figuratively) In a state of depression; gloomy; melancholy.

Translations

covered with clouds; overshadowed; darkened

• Bau Bidayuh: bidondom
• Bulgarian: заоблачен (bg) (zaoblačen)
• Catalan: cobert (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 陰沉／阴沉 (zh) (yīnchén), 灰濛蒙／灰蒙蒙 (huīmēngmēng), 低沉 (zh) (dīchén)

• Dutch: betrokken (nl), bewolkt (nl)
• Finnish: pilvinen (fi), synkkä (fi)
• French: nuageux (fr), couvert (fr)
• Galician: cuberto (gl)
• German: bedeckt (de), bewölkt (de)
• Greek:

  Ancient: συννεφής (sunnephḗs)

  Ancient Greek: ἐπινέφελος (epinéphelos)

• Hungarian: felhős (hu)
• Icelandic: þungbúinn
• Indonesian: mendung (id)
• Irish: duibheagánach, modartha
• Italian: coperto (it) m, nuvoloso (it) m
• Japanese: どんよりした (ja) (donyori shita)
• Khmer: មេឃមីរ (meikmii)
• Latin: nūbilus
• Louisiana Creole French: kouvær, kouvè, kouvèr
• Malay: mendung (ms)
• Manchu: ᡨᡠᠯᡥᡠᠨ (tulhun)
• Maori: whakaipuipu, pōkino, taupuru, kōwhanga, tāpuru, taupuru, kēkēao
• Navajo: kʼostʼą́ʼí
• Norman: couvaert
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: overskyet (no), overskya

  Nynorsk: overskya

• Polish: pochmurny (pl)
• Portuguese: nublado (pt)
• Russian: о́блачный (ru) (óblačnyj), па́смурный (ru) (pásmurnyj)
• Sundanese: haleungheum
• Swedish: mulen (sv), mulet (sv)
• Turkish: bulutlu (tr)
• Ukrainian: хма́рний m (xmárnyj), похмурий (poxmuryj)
• Vietnamese: âm u (vi), u ám (vi), phủ mây

meteorological term

• Catalan: cobert (ca)
• Dutch: bewolkt (nl)
• Esperanto: nuboplena
• Finnish: pilvinen (fi)
• French: couvert (fr)
• German: bewölkt (de)
• Hungarian: borult (hu)
• Irish: smúitiúil, scamallach, modartha
• Italian: coperto (it) m
• Polish: zachmurzony (pl)
• Portuguese: encoberto (pt)
• Swedish: mulen (sv)
• Welsh: cymylog (cy)

in a state of depression; gloomy; melancholy

• Bulgarian: мрачен (bg) (mračen), меланхоличен (bg) (melanholičen)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 陰沉／阴沉 (zh) (yīnchén), 低沉 (zh) (dīchén)

• Dutch: neerslachtig (nl)
• Finnish: synkkä (fi)
• Hungarian: borús (hu)
• Russian: угрю́мый (ru) (ugrjúmyj), мра́чный (ru) (mráčnyj), хму́рый (ru) (xmúryj)
• Swedish: mulen (sv)

Verb

overcast (third-person singular simple present overcasts, present participle overcasting, simple past and past participle overcast)

1. (transitive, obsolete) To overthrow.
2. (transitive) To cover with cloud; to overshadow; to darken.
3. (transitive) To make gloomy; to depress.
4. (intransitive, obsolete) To be or become cloudy.
5. (transitive, obsolete) To transform.
6. (transitive, bookbinding) To fasten (sheets) by overcast stitching or by folding one edge over another.

Translations

to cover with cloud; to overshadow; to darken

• Bulgarian: притъмнявам (bg) (pritǎmnjavam)
• Dutch: bewolken (nl), verduisteren (nl)
• Finnish: peittää pilveen
• Galician: nubrar (gl), anubrar (gl)
• Portuguese: nublar (pt)

to be or become cloudy

• Bulgarian: заоблачавам се (zaoblačavam se)
• Dutch: bewolkt zijn
• Finnish: olla pilvistä (to be cloudy), pilvistyä (fi) (to become cloudy)
• Hungarian: beborul (hu)
• Manchu: ᡨᡠᠯᡥᡠᡧᡝᠮᠪᡳ (tulhušembi)

References

• “overcast”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “overcast”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• overacts