transit

1 of 2

noun

1
a(1)
: conveyance of persons or things from one place to another
(2)
: usually local transportation especially of people by public conveyance
also : vehicles or a system engaged in such transportation
b
: an act, process, or instance of passing through or over
2
a
: passage of a celestial body over the meridian of a place or through the field of a telescope
b
: passage of a smaller body (such as Venus) across the disk of a larger (such as the sun)
3
: a theodolite with the telescope mounted so that it can be transited

transit

2 of 2

verb

transited; transiting; transits

intransitive verb

: to make a transit

transitive verb

1
a
: to pass over or through
b
: to cause to pass over or through
2
: to pass across (a meridian, a celestial body, or the field of view of a telescope)
3
: to turn (a telescope) over about the horizontal transverse axis in surveying

Examples of transit in a Sentence

Noun the problems of urban transit Verb once you transit that stretch of dense woods, the hiking should be much easier
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
When compared to other Mercury transits, this is the one that exposes lies, fuels investigative journalism and makes gossip feel more like a confession. Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 7 Oct. 2025 With the country’s interconnected highways and efficient public-transit system, a grandparent is almost never more than an hour away, which is not true for many American families. Marina Lopes, The Atlantic, 6 Oct. 2025
Verb
With this method, a telescope such as the JWST can detect a planet's atmosphere through the way that the light from its star passes through the atmosphere when the planet is transiting. Keith Cooper, Space.com, 8 Oct. 2025 Also in late September, a Russian nuclear-capable submarine transited the strait, moving from the Sea of Okhotsk to the Sea of Japan. Ryan Chan, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for transit

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English transite, from Latin transitus, from transire to go across, pass

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of transit was in the 15th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Transit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/transit. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.

Kids Definition

transit

1 of 2 noun
1
: an act, process, or example of passing through or over : passage
2
: the transporting of persons or things from one place to another
goods lost in transit
3
: local transportation of people in public vehicles
also : the vehicles or system used in such transportation
4
: a surveyor's instrument for measuring angles

transit

2 of 2 verb
: to pass or cause to pass over, through, or across
Etymology

Noun

from Latin transitus "passage, journey," from transire "to go across, pass," from trans- "across, beyond" and ire "to go" — related to issue, itinerary

More from Merriam-Webster on transit

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!