overspeed

English

Etymology

From over- +‎ speed.

Pronunciation

(General American) IPA^(key): /ˈoʊ.vɚˌspid/
(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˌəʊ.vəˈspiːd/
Hyphenation: over‧speed

Verb

overspeed (third-person singular simple present overspeeds, present participle overspeeding, simple past and past participle (mostly US) oversped or (mostly UK) overspeeded)

(intransitive) To travel excessively fast or beyond the permitted rate.
- 1691, John Evelyn, Kalendarium Hortense:
  Caully-flowers over-speeding to pome and head..should be quite erradicated ^{[sic – meaning eradicated]}.
(usually transitive, sometimes intransitive, chiefly mechanics) To operate an engine or machine too fast.
- 1949, A. C. Walshaw, Heat Engines (3 ed.):
  The device should be periodically tested by overspeeding the engine say once a month.

Translations

to travel excessively fast

Finnish: ajaa ylinopeutta

to operate a machine too fast

Finnish: käyttää ylikierroksilla

Noun

overspeed (countable and uncountable, plural overspeeds)

Speed that exceeds a reasonable or permitted rate.
- 1826, Samuel Weller Singer, The Dramatic Works Of William Shakespeare: Macbeth. Hamlet, Prince Of Denmark. King Lear...:
  Trashes are clogs strapped round the neck of a dog to prevent his overspeed.
- 1961 July, “The Hymek Type 3 diesel locomotive for the Western Region”, in Trains Illustrated, page 437:
  Protection devices are provided for engine and locomotive overspeed (maximum service speed is set at 90 m.p.h.); [...].
- 2022 December 14, “Network News: RAIB issues briefing on emergency speed restrictions”, in RAIL, number 972, page 16:
  Investigating four 'overspeed' incidents during hot weather on July 18/19, RAIB discovered that confusion over where the BESRs [blanket emergency speed restrictions] started and finished, as well as the routes to which they applied, were contributory factors. […] There were no consequences from the overspeeds, [resulting from the BESRs] which had been put in place owing to danger of buckled rails.

Antonyms

underspeed

Translations

speed that exceeds reasonable or permitted rate

Finnish: ylinopeus (fi)

References

“overspeed”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.
“overspeed”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.
“overspeed”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.