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Glite Dictionary
over-the-hill

over-the-hill

5 7.9
Too old to be as useful or attractive as before
  • adjective
  • /ˈoʊvər ðə hɪl/
  • Offensive
translation icon : acabado
  • At about 45 years old, the shaman was "over the hill" when she died, according to Grosman.
  • considered over-the-hill
  • over-the-hill already
  • old and over-the-hill

I mean, you got the fame, you got the name, you know, you got the Rep, you know, you're an OG, but you're not over the hill, Right?

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Examples

  • I'm not over the hill yet.

    Absence of Malice (1981)

  • Burned out, beat up and over the hill at 27.

    Wavelength (1983)

  • We're old and over the hill.

    Spanking the Monkey (1994)

  • Perhaps I am over the hill.

    Good Guys Wear Black (1978)

  • She was 34 years old and, if truth were told, a little over the hill.

    Deranged (1974)

  • What the Yankees need are full-time position players, not an entire bench of over-the-hill players again.

    Blog text (29)

  • I feel sorry for the over-the-hill group, aka over-25 in X-Factor land.

    Blog text (27)

  • The 25-year-old has a chance to provide fresh, youthful legs to a Boston team that has been widely criticized for being the league's perennial "over-the-hill" squad.

    Blog text (28)

  • Many people believe that a person is over-the-hill once they turn 40.

  • After years of hard work, she felt that she was over-the-hill in her career and ready for retirement.

Synonyms

outdated
vsover-the-hill
78 5.0

No longer useful or fashionable because it is old

stresses being judged too old for usefulness or attractiveness
washed-up
vsover-the-hill
  • Offensive
22 6.5

No longer successful or popular after being famous

centres on being considered too old rather than only losing fame
outmoded
vsover-the-hill
11 6.5

No longer fashionable or useful

applies more to age and personal decline than just style change
past its prime
vsover-the-hill
2 5.2

No longer at its best or in good condition

emphasizes being judged too old rather than just past peak
a shadow of its former self
vsover-the-hill
  • Informal
1 7.1

A person or thing that is much weaker and less impressive than before

highlights age-based undesirability rather than mere weakened state
superannuated
vsover-the-hill
  • UK
1 9.9

Old and no longer useful because of age

focuses on being seen as too old to be useful or desirable

Antonyms

effective
986 3.1

Produces the intended result, for example a speech or medicine

youthful
85 3.1

Having the energy and fresh look of a young person

How Effective

outstanding
257 3.4
effective
986 3.1
capable
945 1.4
over-the-hill
  • Offensive
5 7.9
ineffective
90 3.4

Surface Forms

over-the-hill positive

Morphology

over-the-hill = the + hill (opaque) = over + the + hill

Although composed of familiar words, the idiomatic sense 'past one's prime' cannot be derived from the literal meanings by an average learner. [Postprocessing: moved 'over' from base_words to prefix]

Etymology

Over-the-hill comes from the simple picture of going over a hill: once you pass the top you go downhill and are past the best part. That's why people call someone over-the-hill when they think that person is 'past their peak' or no longer as useful or attractive.