transit

1 of 2

noun

tran·​sit ˈtran(t)-sət  ˈtran-zət 

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

c

: change, transition

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

Synonyms

Verb

• course
• cover
• cross
• cut (across)
• follow
• go
• navigate
• pass (over)
• perambulate
• peregrinate
• proceed (along)
• track
• travel
• traverse

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

Noun

Now, following the U.S. bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities on Saturday, the Iranian Parliament has reportedly voted to close this important energy transit chokepoint. —Robert Rapier, Forbes.com, 22 June 2025

Hahn, who chairs Metro’s transit board, worried that residents will be too afraid to go to work, attend church and, now, hop on public transit. —Julia Wick, Los Angeles Times, 21 June 2025

Verb

On Friday, the Liaoning transited the Miyako Strait—a key chokepoint in Japan's Ryukyu Islands—before entering the East China Sea that same day, apparently en route to its home port of Qingdao. —Micah McCartney, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 June 2025

Around 20% of global liquified natural gas (LNG) also transited through the Strait of Hormuz last year, primarily from Qatar. —Sam Meredith, CNBC, 23 June 2025

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

Phrases Containing transit

• in transit
• mass transit
• public transit
• rapid transit
• transit camp
• transit visa

Rhymes for transit

• paratransit

Kids Definition

transit

1 of 2 noun

tran·​sit ˈtran(t)s-ət  ˈtranz- 

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