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My textbook says

They discussed the mater over tea and cakes.
"over" can describe two things are being done simultaneously. "over dinner", "over work", and "over a book" are the examples of this kind.
I tried to find example sentences that use "over work" and "over a book" only to find I was overworking.
Can you please write down some example sentences for me?
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The idea of doing some activity "over" another one is usually constrained to meals or eating, or at least some other activity that is equally passive. You might discuss something over dessert, for example. It's quite odd to suggest that you're doing some activity "over a book" or "over work", which is probably why you're not finding examples.

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  • I have seen "over a book" when the book is a shared object of study, as "they discussed the case over a copy of Nimmer on Copyright" but this is an old fashioned usage, that I think of as from the period of 1880-1930 or earlier, and not that common then, I think.
    – David Siegel
    Commented Dec 24, 2021 at 6:36
  • Yes, and I wouldn’t call that wrong, but it’s not colloquial.
    – stmpjmpr
    Commented Dec 25, 2021 at 23:09

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