across

English Online Dictionary. What means across‎? What does across mean?

English

Alternative forms

• acrost (dialectal)

Etymology

From Middle English acros, from early Middle English a-croiz, a-creoyz, from Anglo-Norman an (“in, on”) + croiz (“in the form of a cross”); Equivalent to a- +‎ cross. More at cross.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: ə-krŏs′, IPA^(key): /əˈkɹɒs/
• (General American) enPR: ə-krôs′, IPA^(key): /əˈkɹɔs/
• (cot–caught merger, Canada) enPR: ə-krŏs′, IPA^(key): /əˈkɹɑs/
• Rhymes: -ɒs, -ɔːs
• Hyphenation: across

Preposition

across

1. To, toward, or from the far side of (something that lies between two points of interest).

2. On the opposite side of (something that lies between two points of interest).

3. (Southern US, African-American Vernacular) across from: on the opposite side, relative to something that lies between, from (a point of interest).
   • 1994 June 21, Thong P Tong <tongtp@coyote.cig.mot.com>, "Re: Battle Tech Center", message-ID <2u7lsi$79n@delphinium.cig.mot.com>, comp.sys.ibm.pc.games, Usenet [1]:

     And make sure you're parked across the mall in the outside lot. […] Last time I was there, I parked in a parking structure and paid an arm and a leg for it.
4. From one side to the other within (a space being traversed).
5. At or near the far end of (a space).
6. Spanning.

7. Throughout.
8. So as to intersect or pass through or over at an angle.
9. In possession of full, up-to-date information about; abreast of.

Related terms

• cross

Translations

Adverb

across (not comparable)

1. From one side to the other.
2. On the other side.

3. In a particular direction.

4. (crosswords) Horizontally.

Translations

Noun

across (plural acrosses)

1. (crosswords, often in combination) A word that runs horizontally in the completed puzzle grid or its associated clue.

   I solved all of the acrosses, but then got stuck on 3 down.

Derived terms

Further reading

• “across”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “across”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “across”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Anagrams

• Oscars, ROSCAs, Rascos, caross, oscars