trans

adjective \ ˈtran(t)s , ˈtranz \

Updated on: 15 Apr 2018

1 a : transgender

The Affordable Care Act included trans health care in many places and that was a remarkable step in the right direction for trans people, but in some ways it still remained difficult to receive personalized and comprehensive transgender healthcare.
—Alexa Corazón

b : transsexual

2 chemistry : characterized by having certain groups of atoms on opposite sides of the longitudinal axis of a double bond or of the plane of a ring in a molecule

3 genetics : relating to or being an arrangement of two very closely linked genes in the heterozygous condition in which one mutant allele and one wild-type allele are on each of the two homologous chromosomes — compare cis 3

Recent Examples of trans from the Web

Nikolle, 27, is a trans woman from Honduras making her way to the US-Mexico border with a group of people part of the 1,500 plus caravan that began in Chiapas, Mexico two weeks ago.

— khushbu shah and emanuella grinberg, CNN, "To live openly as a transgender woman, she had to flee. In the migrant caravan, she realized she wasn't alone," 11 Apr. 2018
With the measure’s defeat, existing nondiscrimination protections for trans people that were approved by the Anchorage Assembly in 2015 will remain in place.

— german lopez, Vox, "Anchorage, Alaska, voters reject anti-transgender bathroom bill," 7 Apr. 2018
Not all trans people choose to, or can afford to, undergo medical surgeries.

— Washington Post, "Terms: Panel on future of transgender, nonbinary people," 29 Mar. 2018
Fogarty started her research in 2008, after learning more about widespread violence against trans people.

— refinery29.com, ""The Next Wave Of Feminism Supports The Empowerment Of All Genders"," 27 Mar. 2018
Another study found that four-fifths of murders of trans people take place in Latin America.

— The Economist, "The lives and deaths of transgender Latin Americans," 15 Mar. 2018
Chile is not notably supportive of trans people, but Ms. Vega finds refuge in her work.

— ruth la ferla, New York Times, "The Star of ‘A Fantastic Woman’ Picks a Few Come-Hither Dresses," 1 Feb. 2018
Staples introduces the story’s first trans woman, Petrichor, during Saga’s detention-center arc with a splash panel—a full page devoted to a single image.

— shaan amin, The Atlantic, "The Sprawling, Empathetic Adventure of Saga," 28 Mar. 2018
If you, yourself, are not of trans experience, understanding isn’t necessarily a possibility.

— anna schroll, National Geographic, "What It's Like Being Transgender in the Emergency Room," 19 Mar. 2018

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

First Known Use of trans

1892

Other Chemical Engineering Terms

alkali, cation, decant, hygroscopic, isotope, oxidize, slurry, solute, viscous

trans

abbreviation

1 transaction

2 transitive

3 translated; translation; translator

4 transmission

5 transportation

6 transverse

trans-

prefix

1 : on or to the other side of : across : beyond

transatlantic

2 a : beyond (a specified chemical element) in the periodic table

transuranium

b : trans

trans-dichloro-ethylene

— compare cis- 2

3 : through

transcutaneous

4 : so or such as to change or transfer

transliterate

translocation

transamination

transship

See trans- defined for English-language learners

See trans- defined for kids

Origin and Etymology of trans-

Latin trans-, tra- across, beyond, through, so as to change, from trans across, beyond — more at ¹through

TRANS Defined for English Language Learners

trans-

prefix

: on or to the other side of : across or beyond
: so as to change in form or position

TRANS Defined for Kids

trans.

abbreviation

transitive

trans-

prefix

1 : on or to the other side of : across : beyond

transatlantic

2 : so as to change or transfer

transplant

Medical Dictionary

trans

adjective \ ˈtran(t)s , ˈtranz \

1 : characterized by or having certain groups of atoms on opposite sides of the longitudinal axis of a double bond or of the plane of a ring in a molecule — see all-trans

2 : relating to or being an arrangement of two very closely linked genes in the heterozygous condition in which one mutant allele and one wild-type allele are on each of the two homologous chromosomes — compare cis 2