1
: placed to win if a competitor wins, places, or shows
an across-the-board racing bet
2
: embracing or affecting all classes or categories : blanket
an across-the-board price increase

Examples of across-the-board in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Lawmakers must pass all 12 appropriations bills before April 30 to avoid one percent across-the-board cuts, a plan embraced by some in the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus. Jacob Bogage, Washington Post, 3 Mar. 2024 The across-the-board increases are an abrupt departure from the pandemic period, when household debt delinquencies reached historic lows and Americans were piling away savings, largely thanks to government forbearance programs and support like stimulus payments and enhanced unemployment insurance. Alicia Adamczyk, Fortune, 1 Mar. 2024 According to the lawsuits against Sony and UMG, the music companies had imposed an across-the-board rule that sound recordings (separate from the underlying musical compositions) were effectively never subject to the termination. Bill Donahue, Billboard, 28 Feb. 2024 But that would institute across-the-board 1% spending cuts that Democrats and moderate Republicans oppose. USA TODAY, 26 Feb. 2024 Some community members also blame 15 percent across-the-board raises that San Diego Unified approved last year, which was estimated to cost the district $130.5 million last school year and $208 million each following year. Kristen Taketa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Feb. 2024 And some hardliners have also advocated for passing a continuing resolution through April, which would result in 1% across-the-board spending cuts under the agreement made during the debt ceiling talks. Kaia Hubbard, CBS News, 22 Feb. 2024 Employers must exercise caution when considering across-the-board RTO mandates. Michelle Travis, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024 The supervisor’s son Klaus (Theo Dahl) is insecure about his across-the-board Bs, fretting that mediocre grades will steer him into the life of an underachiever. David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'across-the-board.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1945, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of across-the-board was in 1945

Dictionary Entries Near across-the-board

Cite this Entry

“Across-the-board.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/across-the-board. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

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