Definition

1. Verb:
   • To reject or disallow by exercising superior authority: To officially decide against or cancel a decision, judgment, or proposal made by someone with less authority.
   • To prevail over or dominate: To have a decisive influence or effect that supersedes something else.

Usage

• Grammatical Use: "Overrule" is a transitive verb. It requires a direct object (e.g., a decision, an objection, a judge).
• Context: It is commonly used in formal contexts, especially in legal, parliamentary, and managerial settings where hierarchical authority is involved.
• Sentence Structure: The subject is the person or body with higher authority (e.g., a higher court, a manager, a chairperson). The object is the decision or opinion being rejected.

Examples

• Legal Context:
  • The Supreme Court overruled the lower court's decision.
  • The judge overruled the lawyer's objection.
• Managerial/Formal Context:
  • The board of directors overruled the CEO's proposal.
  • The committee chair overruled the motion.

Advanced Usage

• "To be overruled" (Passive Voice): Describes the state of a decision or person whose judgment has been rejected by a higher authority.
  • The objection was overruled by the judge.
  • She felt her expertise was overruled by politics.

Variants and Related Words

• Overruling (noun/adj): The act or instance of overruling.
  • The overruling of the precedent set a new legal standard.
• Overruled (adj): Describes a decision that has been rejected.
  • The overruled verdict caused controversy.

Synonyms

• Override: To use authority to reject or cancel.
• Veto: To reject a decision or proposal made by a law-making body.
• Reverse: To change a decision to the opposite, especially in a legal context.
• Annul: To declare invalid or void.

Antonyms

• Uphold: To confirm or support a decision.
• Approve: To officially agree to or accept.
• Sustain: To rule in favor of; to allow to continue.

Related Phrases

• "To have the power to overrule": To possess the authority to reject decisions.
  • The principal has the power to overrule the teacher's disciplinary action.
• "To stand overruled": A formal expression indicating that a previous decision or objection is no longer valid.
  • The initial objection stands overruled.

Verb

1. rule against
   • The Republicans were overruled when the House voted on the bill