overarching

[oh-ver-ahr-ching] / ˌoʊ vərˈɑr tʃɪŋ /

ADJECTIVE

encompassing

Synonyms

STRONGEST

overall throughout underlying

STRONG

including

WEAK

ambient encircling enveloping overshadowing surrounding

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The Pentagon said in its national defense strategy issued in January that its overarching goal was to establish “strategic stability” in the Indo-Pacific region and de-escalate tensions with the Chinese military.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 19, 2026

“It can be a nice overarching tool that can allow you to kind of simplify your bill-paying,” Schulz said.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 26, 2026

Fueling the selling is an overarching fear that Anthropic’s Claude, OpenAI’s ChatGPT, or even Alphabet’s Gemini will eventually develop business applications that displace the services provided by many public software companies.

From Barron's • Feb. 11, 2026

Lawyers for ANL said in written submissions that the social circles of most of the claimants in the overarching case were "leaky".

From BBC • Feb. 6, 2026

A stream splashed swiftly between mossy rocks, and disappeared over a lip into a narrow little chasm dark under the overarching trees.

From "The Amber Spyglass" by Philip Pullman