through

preposition

\ ˈthrü

Definition of through

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a(1) —used as a function word to indicate movement into at one side or point and out at another and especially the opposite side of drove a nail through the board

(2) : by way of left through the door

(3) —used as a function word to indicate passage from one end or boundary to another a highway through the foresta road through the desert

(4) : without stopping for : past drove through a red light

b —used as a function word to indicate passage into and out of a treatment, handling, or process the matter has already passed through her hands

2 —used as a function word to indicate means, agency, or intermediacy: such as

a : by means of : by the agency of

b : because of failed through ignorance

c : by common descent from or relationship with related through their grandfather

3a : over the whole surface or extent of : throughout homes scattered through the valley

b —used as a function word to indicate movement within a large expanse flew through the air

c —used as a function word to indicate exposure to a specified set of conditions put him through hell

4 —used as a function word to indicate a period of time: such as

a : during the entire period of all through her life

b : from the beginning to the end of the tower stood through the earthquake

c : to and including Monday through Friday

5a —used as a function word to indicate completion or exhaustion got through the bookwent through the money in a year

b —used as a function word to indicate acceptance or approval especially by an official body got the bill through the legislature

through

adverb

\ ˈthrü

Definition of through (Entry 2 of 3)

1 : from one end or side to the other

2a : from beginning to end

b : to completion, conclusion, or accomplishment see it through

3 : to the core : completely soaked through

4 : into the open : out break through

through

adjective

\ ˈthrü

Definition of through (Entry 3 of 3)

1a : arrived at completion or accomplishment is through with the job

b : washed-up, finished

2a : admitting free or continuous passage : direct a through road

b : extending from one surface to another a through mortise

3a : initiated at and destined for points outside a local zone through traffic

b(1) : going from point of origin to destination without change or reshipment a through train

(2) : of or relating to such movement a through ticket

Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about through

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Synonyms & Antonyms for through

Synonyms: Preposition

amid (or amidst), among (also amongst), mid, midst

Synonyms: Adverb

around, over, round, throughout

Synonyms: Adjective

complete, completed, concluded, done, down, ended, finished, over, over with, terminated, up

Antonyms: Adjective

continuing, incomplete, ongoing, uncompleted, undone, unfinished

Examples of through in a Sentence

Preposition

He hit the nail through the wood. She looked through the binoculars. The bullet had gone through his hand. He just walked through the door. The security guards pushed their way through the crowd. She could see a figure through the fog. I looked through the window.

Adverb

Let these people go through, please. The nail went completely through. It snowed heavily, but we made it through. We'll never get through—the mud is too deep. The package was shipped through to New Orleans. Read the essay through and tell me what you think.

Adjective

When the police were through with him, a taxi took him, his suitcase, the homburg funeral hat, in the other direction … — Annie Proulx, Atlantic, November 1997 I tell him I like fanzines. This one's mad, he says, really mad. I can borrow it when he's through. — Lynne Tillman, Motion Sickness, 1991 Today though, once experience shows on a woman's face, she's through. — Patricia Volk, New Woman, November 1990 I'm not through yet. I have one more topic to discuss. If you're through using the phone, I'd like to use it next. Is this a through road? The left lane is for through traffic only.

Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb

Place sheets in oven, then reduce oven temp to 350°F and bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until puffed and golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. — Woman's Day Kitchen, Woman's Day, "Coconut Cream Éclairs," 7 Mar. 2019 Remember when commemorating an engagement meant buying the bride a stack of wedding magazines to flip through? — Carrie Goldberg, Harper's BAZAAR, "Introducing: BAZAAR Bride—the Ultimate Membership for the Newly-Engaged," 5 Feb. 2019 Morning temperatures remain in the cool mid-50s to near 60, with afternoon highs warming to the upper 60s to low 70s as a warm front tries to push through from south to north. — Dan Stillman, Washington Post, "D.C.-area forecast: Soggy Saturday, with a chance of sun on Sunday," 19 May 2018 Arrange all potatoes cut sides down and roast both sheets, rotating positions of sheets halfway through, until golden brown and tender, 25 to 30 minutes. — The Good Housekeeping Test Kitchen, Good Housekeeping, "Mustard Glazed Pork Chops," 21 Dec. 2018 Step 2: Warm up your engine Halfway through, funnel a three-ounce sample into your bottle. — Ezra Dyer, Popular Mechanics, "For Motor Oil, How Old Is Too Old?," 6 Dec. 2018 Arrange on a wire rack on a baking sheet and pre-bake in a preheated 400F oven until the bacon is cooked and the carrots are tender, about 20-30 minutes, glazing with the maple syrup half way through. — Christina Pérez, Vogue, "3 Fancy But Easy BBQ Recipes to Grill Before Summer Is Over," 30 Aug. 2018 An earlier deal with SpaceX fell through, as well as a deal with Orbital ATK to develop a custom rocket for the aircraft. — Eric Berger, Ars Technica, "Rocket Report: Vega soars, Delta 2 end nears, hearing a Falcon Heavy launch," 24 Aug. 2018 Bake until golden, turning bread halfway through for even cooking, about 7 minutes total. — Kitty Greenwald, WSJ, "This Salad Is the Best Way to Use All the Vegetables You Have Right Now," 16 Aug. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

In a machine recount, all ballots across the state are re-fed through vote tabulators. — Arian Campo-flores, WSJ, "Florida Recount: How It Works," 9 Nov. 2018 Danny Rose gets a through ball on the left from Jordan Henderson and gets off a clean shot. — Andrew Das, New York Times, "England Shakes Its Shootout Curse and Saves Its World Cup," 5 July 2018 Bedoya sprung Burke with a through ball that split two Red Bulls defenders, and the Jamaican striker hit a cool, low shot. — Jonathan Tannenwald, Philly.com, "Haris Medunjanin, Cory Burke lead Union's 2-1 win over Red Bulls in U.S. Open Cup," 16 June 2018 Hernandez and Vela were through on goal but the latter couldn't quite find his compatriot with a through ball and Germany were able to recover to win back the ball. — Joe Marcovitch, Pro Soccer USA, "Germany 0-1 Mexico: Reigning champions stunned by magnificent El Tri in World Cup opener," 17 June 2018 Much of the transmission in this outbreak is thought to be person-to-person through injection drug use and from generally poor sanitation, according to the CDC. — Shari Rudavsky, Indianapolis Star, "Hepatitis outbreaks: 10 things to know about the liver disease," 15 June 2018 Hector Villalba intercepted a Will Johnson pass intended for Spector and passed to Martinez, who then played a through ball for Miguel Almirón. — Jordan Culver, Pro Soccer USA, "Atlanta United thrashes Orlando City 4-0, extends Lions’ MLS losing skid to eight," 30 June 2018 Drake’s frustration and fatigue have been something of a through line in his art. — Juan Vidal, Billboard, "Drake's Strikes Back With Double Album 'Scorpion'," 29 June 2018 Barnwell Road will also have a through lane and a right-hand turn lane. — Arielle Kass, ajc, "Fulton County to get nearly $15 million for transportation projects," 28 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'through.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.