across

 
Pronunciation: /əˈkrɒs/

preposition & adverb

  • 1from one side to the other of (a place, area, etc.): [as preposition]: I ran across the street travelling across Europe [as adverb]: he had swum across
  • [as adverb] used with an expression of measurement: mounds some 30 metres across
  • 2expressing position or orientation: [as preposition]: they lived across the street from one another the bridge across the river [as adverb]: he looked across at me halfway across, Jenny jumped
  • 3 [as adverb] referring to a crossword answer which reads horizontally: 19 across

Phrases

across the board

  • 1applying to all: the cutbacks might be across the board
  • 2US (in horse racing) denoting a bet in which equal amounts are staked on the same horse to win, place, or show in a race.

across from

opposite: she sat across from me

be (or get) across something

fully understand all the details of an issue or situation: the legislation is mind-bogglingly complex and you really need to be across it

Origin:

Middle English (as an adverb meaning 'in the form of a cross'): from Old French a croix, en croix 'in or on a cross', later regarded as being from a-2 + cross