Other forms: overpowered, overpowering, overpowers
To overpower somebody is to defeat them by being stronger. Not out-thinking them — out-muscling them.
It is the verb of physical struggle, so a guard is overpowered and a suspect is overpowered by officers. It also works on the senses, since a smell can overpower a room and a flavour can overpower a dish. Both share the idea of one force simply exceeding another. The adjective overpowering describes the smell rather than the struggle, and overwhelm is the near synonym for feelings.
Proto-Indo-European
*h₁es-
Middle English
power
English
power
English, today
overpower
From over- + power. power comes from Middle English power. From Middle English power, poer, from Old French poeir, from Vulgar Latin posso, from Latin possum, whence potent. Compare French pouvoir. Displaced the native anweald.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA