scavalcare

to climb over

verb skah-val-KAH-reh Rare

Origin: From 'scavalcare', from 'cavallo' (horse); original sense of dismounting or stepping over a horse.

Also means

to bypass

Usage Note

Scavalcare literally means to climb over or vault an obstacle (scavalcare un muro = to climb over a wall), but is very common figuratively meaning to bypass or leapfrog someone in a hierarchy — lo ha scavalcato nella promozione = he leapfrogged him for the promotion. It is a regular -are verb taking avere. The figurative sense is frequent in workplace and political discourse.

Examples

"Il ladro ha scavalcato il cancello del giardino."

Natural Translation

The thief climbed over the garden gate.

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