surmount
verb
sur·mount sər-ˈmau̇nt 
surmounted; surmounting; surmounts
1
: to prevail over : overcome
surmount an obstacle
2
: to get to the top of : climb
3
: to stand or lie at the top of
4
obsolete : to surpass in quality or attainment : excel
Did you know?
Our verb mount, meaning "ascend, get up onto", comes from the same Latin root as mountain, and we keep those images in mind when using surmount, since climbing up or over a mountain is a symbol of achievement. The word almost always refers to human effort, and almost always in a positive way; thus, we speak of surmounting difficulties, surmounting problems, surmounting hurdles, surmounting handicaps—you get the idea.
Examples of surmount in a Sentence
an Olympic swimmer who surmounted endless obstacles to achieve her goals
Recent Examples on the Web
Realistically, there is no end of hurdles — legal, political, practical — that would have to be surmounted for a partial Texas-New Mexico merger to occur. —
Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 14 Apr. 2026 Realistically, there is no end of hurdles — legal, political, practical — that would have to be surmounted for a partial Texas-New Mexico merger to occur. —Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2026 The transportation network, in hopes of surmounting its budget problems and offsetting rising labor costs, had increased last year what hotels paid annually by 5%, but did not want to go higher. —Victoria Le, Oc Register, 28 Mar. 2026 However, with record-breaking early and mail voting, deputy clerk of elections Edmund Michalowski ventured total votes this election would surmount the June 2022 primary. —Madeline Buckley, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for surmount
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 14 Apr. 2026 Realistically, there is no end of hurdles — legal, political, practical — that would have to be surmounted for a partial Texas-New Mexico merger to occur. —Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2026 The transportation network, in hopes of surmounting its budget problems and offsetting rising labor costs, had increased last year what hotels paid annually by 5%, but did not want to go higher. —Victoria Le, Oc Register, 28 Mar. 2026 However, with record-breaking early and mail voting, deputy clerk of elections Edmund Michalowski ventured total votes this election would surmount the June 2022 primary. —Madeline Buckley, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for surmount
Cite this Entry
“Surmount.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.grautoblog.com/dictionary/surmount. Accessed 27 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
surmount
verb
sur·mount sər-ˈmau̇nt
1
: overcome sense 1
surmount an obstacle
2
: to get to the top of : climb
3
: to stand or lie at the top of : crown
a weather vane surmounts the roof
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
