Meaning & use
overculture
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Meanings
nouncountabletechnical
The dominant culture that shapes or controls smaller cultures within a society.
Grammar: Usually singular with 'the'; plural 'overcultures' is rare.
Patterns
- the overculture
- within the overculture
- the dominant overculture
The novel explores how immigrants adapt to the overculture.
Critics argue that the overculture ignores minority voices.
nouncountabledisapprovingtechnical
A culture that is too powerful or pervasive, often seen as suppressing others.
Grammar: Often used with a critical tone in sociology and cultural studies.
Patterns
- resist the overculture
- the overculture's influence
The artists rejected what they saw as an overculture of consumerism.
She wrote about the overculture that dominates global media.
Word forms
| plural | overcultures |
|---|
Common combinations
- the dominant overculture
- The dominant overculture sets the norms for everyone else.
- resist the overculture
- The community tried to resist the overculture imposed by the state.
- part of the overculture
- Mainstream media is often seen as part of the overculture.
Synonyms and how they differ
- mainstream
- Mainstream is the usual, most common culture; overculture stresses dominance over smaller groups.
- hegemony
- Hegemony is control by one group, often political; overculture is more about cultural dominance.
Opposites
Word family
- cultural adjective
- Relating to culture.
- culturally adverb
- In a cultural way.
Commonly confused: overculture or subculture?
overculture vs subculture
A subculture is a smaller group within a larger culture; an overculture is the dominant larger culture.
Practice
In sociology, the ______ is the mainstream culture that shapes smaller groups.
Choose one answer.
Overculture means the dominant culture. A subculture is a smaller group, agriculture is farming, and counterculture actively opposes the mainstream.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “overculture”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.