First Known Use: 1654
Dictionary
supersede
transitive verb su·per·sede \ˌsü-pər-ˈsēd\
: to take the place of (someone or something that is old, no longer useful, etc.) : to replace (someone or something)
su·per·sed·edsu·per·sed·ing
Full Definition of SUPERSEDE
1
a : to cause to be set aside b : to force out of use as inferior
2
: to take the place or position of
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Examples of SUPERSEDE
- Fortunately, the scientific enterprise has its own self-correcting mechanisms that eventually sort things out. Studies that are wrong will be superseded by better studies with different results. Studies that are right will be corroborated by other good studies. —Harriet Hall, Skeptic, 2007
- The ancient human carriers of information and understanding—elders, priests, bards, teachers, and community members—are superseded by a more durable and efficient medium, the printed word. —M. Rex Miller, The Millennium Matrix, 2004
- Upgrading America's too-old, too-slow telephone network, which took about a century to build, is a massive task. But if you believe predictions that the Internet will one day supersede the telephone as the world's primary means of communications, these companies will be road kill if they simply sit by the wayside. —Bethany McLean, Fortune, 6 Dec. 1999
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Origin of SUPERSEDE
Middle English (Scots) superceden to defer, from Middle French, from Latin supersedēre to sit on top, refrain from, from super- + sedēre to sit — more at sit
Synonym Discussion of SUPERSEDE
replace, displace, supplant, supersede mean to put out of a usual or proper place or into the place of another. replace implies a filling of a place once occupied by something lost, destroyed, or no longer usable or adequate <replaced the broken window>. displace implies an ousting or dislodging <war had displaced thousands>. supplant implies either a dispossessing or usurping of another's place, possessions, or privileges or an uprooting of something and its replacement with something else <was abruptly supplanted in her affections by another>. supersede implies replacing a person or thing that has become superannuated, obsolete, or otherwise inferior <the new edition supersedes all previous ones>.
Rhymes with SUPERSEDE
aniseed, antecede, beating reed, beggarweed, bitterweed, bottle-feed, bugleweed, butterweed, carpetweed, centipede, chicken feed, copyread, cottonseed, cottonweed, crazyweed, double reed, Ganymede, giant reed, go to seed, interbreed, intercede, interplead, jewelweed, jimsonweed, locoweed, millipede, Nicene Creed, overfeed, pedigreed, pickerelweed, poppy seed, Port Said, pumpkinseed, quitclaim deed, retrocede, rosinweed, Runnymede, silverweed, thimbleweed, title deed, tumbleweed, underfeed, up to speed, waterweed
SUPERSEDE Defined for Kids
supersede
verb su·per·sede \ˌsü-pər-ˈsēd\
su·per·sed·edsu·per·sed·ing
Definition of SUPERSEDE for Kids
: to take the place or position of <These instructions supersede those you received earlier.>
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