across

A2 Topic:Grammar & Function Words

Also spelled acrost

US /əˈkɹɔs/ UK /əˈkɹɒs/ See IPA manual

Freq #806

Meanings

1

prep
from one side of something to the other

We walked across the bridge to reach the old town.
2

prep
on the opposite side of something

The bakery is just across the street from my house.
3

adv
from one side to the other; measured from side to side

The river is nearly a mile across at this point.

Thesaurus

Word family

Related forms cross

Appears in

Phrases (8)

See all

get across
to communicate an idea so that another person understands it

Verb + adverb
came across
communicated a message or impression that other people could understand

Verb + adverb
come across
to find or encounter someone or something unexpectedly

Verb + preposition/particle
cut across
cross an area by taking a direct route through it

Verb + preposition/particle
look across
to face or be oriented toward the opposite side of a space

Verb + preposition/particle
pass across
to travel from one side of a space to another

Verb + preposition/particle

Idioms (2)

See all

Simplified etymology

Across comes from Old French a croix or en croix, meaning “in or on a cross.” In Middle English it was first used adverbially for something arranged in the form of a cross.

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₁én Proto-Italic *en Old Latin en Latin in Old French en Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker-der.? Latin crux Old French crois Anglo-Norman an croizbor. Middle English acros English across 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.

acros Middle English a-croiz Middle English an Old English

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Grammar & Function Words

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# across

**Type:** Word
**Level:** A2
**Part of speech:** prep, adv
**IPA (US):** /əˈkɹɔs/
**IPA (UK):** /əˈkɹɒs/
**Frequency rank:** 806

## Meanings
1. from one side of something to the other
2. on the opposite side of something
3. from one side to the other; measured from side to side

## Examples
- We walked across the bridge to reach the old town.
- The bakery is just across the street from my house.
- The river is nearly a mile across at this point.

## Related Forms
- cross

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: acros
- Root: a-croiz
- Root: an

## Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₁én Proto-Italic *en Old Latin en Latin in Old French en Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker-der.? Latin crux Old French crois Anglo-Norman an croizbor. Middle English acros English across 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.

## AI Etymology
Across comes from Middle English acros, from early Middle English a-croiz, a-creoyz, from Anglo-Norman an (“in, on”) plus croiz (“in the form of a cross”). Compare cross. By surface analysis, a- plus cross. The analysis is mainly morphological: the modern adverbial form is built from the named base and affix.

## Topics
- Grammar & Function Words

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