overlooked

1. 1
   adjective

   Passed by without being noticed or given the attention it deserves.

   Like a footnote that carries the key fact but gets skipped by every reader.

   The report highlighted several overlooked safety risks at the plant.

   Talented but overlooked, the musician finally gained recognition late in life.

   Similarunnoticed, neglected, unrecognized, underrated, disregarded

   Oppositerecognized, acknowledged, celebrated

   Note

   A participle that has become a true adjective, which is why it can be compared: one writer can be more overlooked than another, and a book can be the most overlooked of its decade. As an adjective it keeps only the 'missed' meaning. The view from above and the deliberate pardoning belong to the past-tense verb, so an overlooked error is one nobody caught, not one somebody forgave.

2. 2
   verb

   Simple past and past participle of overlook.

   The committee overlooked several qualified candidates for the role.

   His contribution was overlooked for many years.

   Note

   The regular -ed form of overlook does double duty, and so does its meaning. With a place as subject it describes position (the cottage overlooked the bay). With a person as subject it describes attention, and context must decide between failing to see a mistake and choosing to let it pass. Two older uses, watching over and spying on, are archaic and suit only a deliberately period voice.

   We ate breakfast on a balcony that overlooked the harbor.

   The manager saw the mistake but overlooked it, since it was her first week.

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