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Added 7 October 2026

across

/əˈkɹɒs/ preposition

In Latin: trāns Wiktionary

preposition Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about across at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

To, toward, or from the far side of (something that lies between two points of interest).
We rowed across the river.
On the opposite side of (something that lies between two points of interest).
That store is across the street.
across from: on the opposite side, relative to something that lies between, from (a point of interest).

adverb

From one side to the other.
she helped the blind man across; the river is half a mile across
On the other side.
If we sail off at noon, when will we be across?
In a particular direction.
He leaned across for a book.

noun

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.

Origin

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”). More at cross. By surface analysis, a- + cross.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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