[1650–60; ‹ L superfūsus, ptp. of superfundere to pour over, equiv. to super- super- + -fūsus, equiv. to fud- (base of fundere to pour) + -tus ptp. suffix, with dt ˃ s]This word is first recorded in the period 1650–60. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: agency, cardholder, parameter, siphon, syllabussuper- is a prefix occurring originally in loanwords from Latin, with the basic meaning“above, beyond.” Words formed with super- have the following general senses: “to place or be placed above or over” (superimpose; supersede), “a thing placed over or added to another” (superscript; superstructure; supertax), “situated over” (superficial; superlunary) and, more figuratively, “an individual, thing, or property that exceeds customarynorms or levels” (superalloy; superconductivity; superman; superstar), “an individual or thing larger, more powerful, or with wider application than othersof its kind” (supercomputer; superhighway; superpower; supertanker), “exceeding the norms or limits of a given class” (superhuman; superplastic), “having the specified property to a great or excessive degree” (supercritical; superfine; supersensitive), “to subject to (a physical process) to an extreme degree or in an unusual way”(supercharge; supercool; supersaturate), “a category that embraces a number of lesser items of the specified kind” (superfamily; supergalaxy), “a chemical compound with a higher proportion than usual of a given constituent”(superphosphate)