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override

/ˌoʊvərˈraɪd//ˌəʊvəˈraɪd/·verb
to overrule a process or decision by using superior authority
Fig. 1 — The smart system has switched the light off on its own, the way it always does — the AUTO lamp lit, the bulb dark.
01Definition

To override is to overrule — to set aside an existing rule, decision, or automatic process by force of higher authority. A manual switch overrides the autopilot; a court overrides a lower ruling; a strong instinct can override reason. From 'ride over', it carries the sense of one force riding straight over another and taking control. What is overridden is not destroyed but suspended: it would still run the moment the stronger signal stepped away, which is exactly why an override has to be held in place.

02In use
  • iThe pilot hit the manual control to override the autopilot before it could deviate further.
  • iiA new safety rule can override the old one, leaving the earlier procedure obsolete.
  • iiiManagement overrode the committee's objection without offering any explanation.
03Collocations
  • override the decision
  • a manual override
  • override the system
  • override an objection

Family override (noun) · overriding (adjective)

04Relations

=overrule, supersede, countermand, veto, nullify

≠uphold, defer to, comply with

06TOEFL & IELTS

Common in TOEFL passages on technology and governance and useful in IELTS as a strong verb for authority ('the minister can override local councils'). It works as a noun too ('a manual override'). Keep the stress on the last syllable for the verb, and pair it with 'decision', 'system' and 'objection'.

07Asked
Is the past tense override, overrode or overrided?
It conjugates exactly like ride: override, overrode, overridden. The committee overrode the objection; the objection was overridden. 'Overrided' is nonstandard and an error examiners notice immediately, because the base verb's irregularity is so familiar. If you can say rode and ridden, you already own overrode and overridden.
What is the difference between override and overrule?
Overrule is a person or body with higher authority saying no: a judge overrules an objection; a manager overrules a plan. Override is a stronger force or mechanism taking precedence, human or not: Congress overrides a presidential veto with a two-thirds vote in both houses; a manual switch overrides the autopilot; panic overrides judgment. Authority rules; force rides over.
What is the difference between override and overwrite?
Overwriting destroys — the new file replaces the old one, which is gone. Overriding suspends — the old rule or setting remains underneath and resumes the moment the override lifts. The scene above runs on exactly that distinction: the automation is never erased; it is only held down while the hand stays on the switch, and it takes the light back the instant the hand lets go.
What does override mean in programming?
A subclass supplies its own version of a method the parent class already defines, and the subclass's version wins whenever it is present — while the parent's original remains defined underneath. It is the same suspended-not-destroyed mechanism the word carries everywhere else, which is why programmers chose it over 'replace'. Its lookalike, overloading, is a different idea: same name, different inputs.
Is override a noun, and does the stress move?
Yes to both: a manual override, a budget override. As a noun the stress walks to the front — an OH-ver-ride — while the verb stresses the last syllable, to over-RIDE, the same noun–verb seesaw as REC-ord/re-CORD and PER-mit/per-MIT. Hearing where a speaker leans tells you the part of speech before the sentence finishes.