Use of a word over time

Email is far and away the preferred method of communication in today’s professional culture. Given the sheer volume of email correspondence in these environments, it is more important than ever to master the art of professional writing. You don’t want to be the cringe-worthy payroll coordinator who doesn’t know the difference between over time and overtime.

These terms might seem identical at first glance, but they function as different parts of speech. While some readers might not catch a mix-up of these words, rest assured that somewhere in the endless chain of FWDs and CCs, someone is silently judging you.

Continue reading to save yourself the embarrassment.

What is the Difference Between Over Time and Overtime?

In this article, I will compare over time vs. overtime. I will use each term in an example sentence, and I will show you a memory trick to help you remember whether over time or overtime is correct.

When to Use Over Time

What does over time mean? Over time is an adverb phrase that describes something which happens gradually. It is not used to describe long hours at a job or an extended period of gameplay in athletics.

Here are some examples,

• Over time, water carved the Grand Canyon into the landscape of what is now Arizona.
• My attentional resources tend to dwindle over time, especially when my ethics textbook is involved.
• Despite initial opposition, Americans came to favor the idea over time.
• He eventually settled down and married an attractive younger woman who has made fewer and fewer public appearances over time. –The Washington Post

When to Use Overtime

What does overtime mean? Overtime is a noun. It usually means either hours worked in excess of a standard work week or the pay rate for this type of work.

For example,

• I would rather go home than finish this production run, but at least I am getting paid overtime for it.
• Janaya has ten hours of overtime already this week; please send her home early on Friday.
• I can’t meet you for dinner tonight because I’m working overtime.

Overtime can also refer to a period of extended gameplay in a sporting event—something beyond the usually amount.

• Mark Letestu scored a power-play goal at 3:59 of overtime and former Ranger Cam Talbot stopped 19 shots as the Oilers beat the Devils 2-1 on Saturday night in Newark. –New York Post

Trick to Remember the Difference

These terms may seem identical, but they are different parts of speech. To decide which one is correct, look at how your sentence is structured: if you use the term as a noun, choose overtime, but if you use it as an adverb phrase, choose over time instead.

Since over time and overtime are so similar, it can be difficult to remember which is which. Thankfully, there is an easy way to remember overtime vs. over time.

Notice that overtime is one single word, like paycheck. If you are referring to extra hours worked that will contribute to a hefty paycheck, remember to spell overtime as a single word.

Summary

Is it over time or overtime? Overtime and over time are two different parts of speech.

• Over time is an adverb phrase, and it is a synonym of the adverb gradually.
• Overtime is a noun, and it refers to extra hours worked or extra compensation for these hours.

Both overtime and paycheck are spelled as a single word, so remember this similarity next time you need to use either over time or overtime.

These phrases are often misused in informal situations, but by using them correctly, you will bolster your credibility and improve the quality of your writing.

Overtime vs. over time: these two terms that are easily confused. One is a compound word, while the other is a verb phrase.

Spell-check in most word processing software programs wouldn’t notice a slip-up of these two words. Spell-check’s job is to look for words that aren’t in its dictionary or words that resemble words in its dictionary but are spelled wrong. Spell-check isn’t perfect so it doesn’t know and can’t guess the word you wanted or what word you meant to use, it can only judge what words are on the page. If you’ve spelled everything correctly, it won’t flag anything as a mistake.

Autocorrect will suggest words that start with the same letters. It suggests what word you may want to save time, but its recommendations are often pretty off base. They won’t help you out, but they will make you laugh.

Overtime (pronounced “oh-vuhr-tie-mm”) is a noun meaning time worked over an agreed-upon schedule. For many US citizens, 40 hours a week is full-time work. If they are classified as hourly (not salaried) employees, they would be paid overtime for the extra hours.

Over Time (pronounced “oh vuhr” “tie-mm”) is a prepositional phrase of two different words.

• Over, in this case, means “spanning” or “covering”
• Time means hours, days, weeks, or years.

A preposition is a word that provides more information about a position in time or physical location concerning other things. Before, above, beyond, and around are examples of prepositions.

The following story uses both words correctly:

Rachel was anxious to travel, but she had just started a new job. The odds of working overtime as a new employee were unlikely. She didn’t know enough about the position and workflow to be tasked with extra work just yet. She would have to be patient: put in many weeks, learn all she could, and acquire vacation days, or paid time off, over time.

Here is another example with visual aid.

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‘Over time’ or ‘overtime’: which one should you use? After all, both words look very similar. But they both mean very different things. Let’s find out more.

In short:

• ‘Over time’ means «gradually over a period of time.»
• ‘Overtime’ refers to additional hours worked, the rate of pay for excess hours, or extra time added at the end of a sports match.

What is the Difference Between ‘Over Time’ or ‘Overtime?’

The words’ over time’ and ‘overtime’ do indeed have completely different meanings and are different grammatically, too. In fact, when I say «words,» that isn’t entirely accurate. ‘Overtime’ certainly is a word, but ‘over time’ is a phrase.

So what do each of them mean? I gave an explanation in the introduction, but we’ll dive a little deeper into the definition of each word and look at examples for each.

What Does ‘Over Time’ Mean?

When something happens ‘over time,’ it means it happens gradually over a period of time, as opposed to suddenly and immediately. It refers to the slow but steady progress that occurs within a non-specific amount of time.

It’s an adverb phrase because it contains an adverb («over»), and even though «time» isn’t technically an adverb, both words together act as an adverb.

What Does ‘Overtime’ Mean?

The word ‘overtime’ is a noun and can refer to one of three things:

• Working overtime refers to working beyond the amount of time stated in your contract. These are usually paid at a higher rate.
• In this sense, the word can also be used to refer to anything or anyone working extra hard.
• The pay rate for each hour (or agreed-upon segment of time) of overtime work is also called ‘overtime.’
• When additional time is tacked on at the end of a sports game, that’s ‘overtime.’

For example:

• A soccer match is usually 90 minutes, but extra minutes will sometimes be added on at the end of time that was lost during the game, due to an injury, for example.

Pronunciation: How to Pronounce ‘Over Time’ and ‘Overtime’

To make things even trickier, ‘over time’ and ‘overtime’ is pronounced exactly the same.

Here’s how to pronounce both words using the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA):

/ˈoʊvərˌtaɪm/

It sounds like this:

Oh-vuh-tie-m

Examples of When to Use ‘Over Time’

So now we’ve learned the meaning of the phrase ‘over time,’ let’s take a look at some example sentences of how to use it:

My dog Brutus was hard work when I first got him, but he’s relaxed over time.

Initially, I wasn’t sure about my coworkers, but I’ve grown closer to them over time.

Over time you get used to early mornings when you have a baby.

My personal trainer is teaching me how to grow muscle over time.

Over time and with practice, he came to be an incredible pianist.

Examples of When to Use ‘Overtime’

And what about ‘overtime’? We’ll have a look at some example sentences using that word now. Remember that it can have three different meanings, so I’ll use all three of those meanings in the examples.

I’m so tired; I’ve worked ninety hours overtime this month.

I need to speak to my boss; I didn’t get paid overtime on my last paycheck.

The commentators have announced four minutes of overtime.

Can we discuss overtime pay before I agree to anything?

As a smoker, my lungs worked overtime to clear my airways.

Concluding Thoughts on ‘Over Time’ or ‘Overtime’

I hope that the difference between these two words makes more sense to you now. Remember that ‘over time’ is an adverb phrase because it contains the adverb ‘over’ and that phrases are always made up of more than one word. This might help you remember the difference between the spelling for each.

But if in doubt, you can always come back to this article. We also have tons of other articles on confusing words, so don’t hesitate to check those out too. Improving your English doesn’t have to be hard!

Asked by: Rupert Schmeler

Score: 4.6/5
(12 votes)

The word overtime is a closed compound word and came into use in the mid-1800s. Over time is an adverb phrase that describes something that happens little by little, something that occurs gradually. The expression over time is an open compound word that exploded in popularity in the mid-20th century.

Which is correct overtime or over time?

To decide which one is correct, look at how your sentence is structured: if you use the term as a noun, choose overtime, but if you use it as an adverb phrase, choose over time instead. … If you are referring to extra hours worked that will contribute to a hefty paycheck, remember to spell overtime as a single word.

Is overtime a verb?

during overtime: to work overtime. of or for overtime: overtime pay. verb (used with object), o·ver·timed, o·ver·tim·ing. to give too much time to (a photographic exposure).

What is the word for over time?

Synonyms:slowly, gradually, heavily, at a snail’s pace, inch by inch, slowly but surely, slow, unhurried, measured, stately, leisurely, sedate, steady, deliberate, lazy, languid.

Is oftentimes a real word?

It’s used to give an idea of how frequently something happens or is done. Something that happens occasionally happens sometimes. Something that happens oftentimes happens a lot (though maybe not all the time). Oftentimes is an adverb, meaning it’s typically used to describe verbs.

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