Online Etymology Dictionary

overshot (adj.): 1530s, in reference to water-wheels, "driven by water shot over from above," past participle adjective from overshoot.
oversight (n.): "supervision," early 14c., from over- + sight. Meaning "omission of notice, fact of passing over without seeing" attested from late 15c.; cf. oversee.
oversimplification (n.): also over-simpification, 1835, from over- + simplification.
oversimplify (v.): 1908, from over- + simplify. Related: Oversimplified; oversimplifying.
oversized (adj.): 1788, past participle adjective from oversize "make too large" (1670s), from over- + size (v.).
oversleep (v.): late 14c., from over- + sleep (v.). Related: Overslept; oversleeping. Old English had a noun oferslæp "too much sleep."
overspend (v.): 1610s, "to wear out," from over- + spend. Meaning "to spend more than is necessary" is attested from 1857. Related: Overspent; overspending.
overspread (v.): c.1200, "to spread throughout," from over- + spread (v.). Related: Overspread (past tense); overspreading. Old English had ofersprædan "to overlay, cover."
overstand (v.): "to stand over or beside," from Old English oferstandan; see over- + stand (v.).
overstate (v.): 1630s, "assume too much grandeur;" see over- + state (n.1). Meaning "state too strongly" is attested from 1798, from state (v.). Related: Overstated, overstating.
overstatement (n.): 1803, from over- + statement.
overstep (v.): Old English ofersteppan "to step over or beyond, cross, exceed;" see over- + step (v.). From the beginning used in figurative senses. Related: Overstepped; overstepping.
overstock (v.): 1640s, from over- + stock (v.). Related: Overstocked; overstocking. The noun is attested from 1710.
overstrong (adj.): "too powerful, too harsh," early 13c., from over- + strong (adj.).
overt (adj.): early 14c., "open to view," from Old French overt (Modern French ouvert), past participle of ovrir "to open," from Latin aperire "to open, uncover," from PIE *ap-wer-yo- from *ap- "off, away" + base *wer- "to cover" (see weir). Cf. Latin operire "to cover," from the same root with PIE prefix *op- "over;" and Lithuanian atveriu "open," uzveriu "shut."
overtake (v.): "to come up to, to catch in pursuit," early 13c., from over- + take (v.). According to OED, originally "the running down and catching of a fugitive or beast of chase"; it finds the sense of over- in this word "not so clear." Related: Overtaken; overtaking. Old English had oferniman "to take away, carry off, seize, ravish."
overtax (v.): 1640s, "to demand too much of," from over- + tax (v.). Related: Overtaxed; overtaxing.
overthrow (v.): early 14c., "to knock down," from over- + throw (v.). Figurative sense of "to cast down from power, defeat" is attested from late 14c. Related: Overthrown; overthrowing. Earlier in same senses was overwerpen "to overturn (something), overthrow; destroy," from Old English oferweorpan (see warp (v.)).
overthrow (n.): 1510s, "act of overthrowing," from over- + throw (n.).
overtime (n.): "time above the regular hours of work," 1846, from over- + time (n.). Sporting sense first attested 1921, in an ice hockey context.
overtire (v.): 1550s, from over- + tire (v.). Related: Overtired; overtiring.
overtly (adv.): early 14c., from overt + -ly (2).
overtone (n.): 1867, in literal sense, from over + tone (n.); a loan-translation of German Oberton, first used by German physicist Hermann Ludwig Ferdinand von Helmholtz (1821-1894) as a contraction of Overpartialton "upper partial tone." Figurative sense of "subtle implication" is from 1890, first attested in writings of William James.
overtop (v.): 1560s, from over- + top (v.). Related: Overtopped; overtopping.
overtower (v.): 1830, from over- + tower (v.). Related: Overtowered; overtowering.
overture (n.): mid-13c., "opening, aperture;" early 15c. as "an introductory proposal," from Old French overture "opening; proposal" (Modern French ouverture), from Latin apertura "opening," from aperire "to open, uncover" (see overt). Orchestral sense first recorded in English 1660s.
overturn (v.): early 13c., of a wheel, "to rotate, roll over," from over- + turn (v.). Attested from c.1300 in general transitive sense "to throw over violently;" figurative meaning "to ruin, destroy" is from late 14c. Of judicial decisions, "to reverse," it is attested from 1826. Related: Overturned; overturning.
overuse (n.): also over-use, 1862, from over- + use (n.).
overview (n.): "survey, summary," 1934, American English, from over- + view (n.). In 17c. it meant "inspection, supervision," but this became obsolete.
overweening (adj.): mid-14c., from present participle of verb overwenen "be conceited, presume, be presumptuous, be over-confident," from Old English oferwenian "to be proud, become insolent or presumptuous;" see over- + ween.
overweight (adj.): "in excess of proper or ordinary weight," 1630s, from over- + weight (n.). Of persons, as a noun, "obesity" from 1917.
overwhelm (v.): early 14c., "to turn upside down, to overthrow," from over- + Middle English whelmen "to turn upside down" (see whelm). Meaning "to submerge completely" is mid-15c. Perhaps the connecting notion is a boat, etc., washed over, and overset, by a big wave. Figurative sense of "to bring to ruin" is attested from 1520s. Related: Overwhelmed; overwhelming; overwhelmingly.
overwhelmed (adj.): mid-15c., past participle adjective from overwhelm.
overwinter (v.): Old English oferwintran; see over- + winter (v.). Related: Overwintered; overwintering.
overwork (v.): "to cause to work too hard," 1520s, from over- + work (v.). Old English oferwyrcan meant "to work all over," i.e. "to decorate the whole surface of." Related: Overworked; overworking.
overwork (n.): "work beyond a person's strength," 1819; see overwork (v.). Old English oferweorc meant "a superstructure, sarcophagus, tomb."
overwrite (v.): 1690s, "to write over other writing," from over- + write (v.). Of computers, it is attested from 1959. Meaning "to write too elaborately or ornately" is from 1923. Related: Overwriting; overwritten.
overwrought (adj.): "worked up to too high a pitch," 1825, literally "over-worked," from over- + wrought. Earlier it meant "exhausted by work" (1660s) as a literal past participle of overwork.
overzealous (adj.): also over-zealous, 1630s, from over- + zealous. Related: Overzealously; overzealousness.
Ovid: Publius Ovidius Nasso, Roman poet (43 B.C.E.-17 C.E.). Related: Ovidian.
oviduct (n.): 1757, from Modern Latin oviductus, from ovi ductus "channel of an egg;" see egg (n.) + duke (n.).
oviform (adj.): "egg-shaped," 1680s, from ovi-, comb. form of Latin ovus "egg" (see ovum) + forma (see form (n.)).
ovine (adj.): "pertaining to or of the nature of sheep," 1828, from Latin ovinus, from ovis "sheep," from PIE Related: *owi- "sheep" (see ewe).
oviparous (adj.): "producing eggs that are hatched outside the body of the female," 1640s, from Latin oviparus, from ovum "egg" (see egg (n.)) + stem of parere "to bring forth" (see pare).
ovoid (adj.): "egg-shaped," 1828, from Modern Latin ovoides, a hybrid from Latin ovum (see ovum) + Greek -oeides "like" (see -oid). Related: Ovoidal.
ovoviviparous (adj.): 1801, from comb. form of ovum + viviparous.
ovular (adj.): 1855, from ovule + -ar.
ovulate (v.): 1888, back-formation from ovulation. Related: Ovulated; ovulating.
ovulation (n.): 1848, from Modern Latin ovulum (see ovule) + -ation.
ovule (n.): 1821, from French ovule and directly from Modern Latin ovulum, literally "small egg," diminutive of Latin ovum "egg" (see ovum).