traverse

verb tra·verse \ trə-ˈvərs also tra-ˈ or ˈtra-(ˌ) \

Updated on: 17 May 2018

Definition of traverse

traversed; traversing

transitive verb

1 a : to go or travel across or over

b : to move or pass along or through

light rays traversing a crystal

2 : to make a study of : examine

3 : to lie or extend across : cross

the bridge traverses a brook

4 a : to move to and fro over or along

b : to ascend, descend, or cross (a slope or gap) at an angle

c : to move (a gun) to right or left on a pivot

5 a : to go against or act in opposition to : oppose, thwart

b : to deny (something, such as an allegation of fact or an indictment) formally at law

6 : to make or carry out a survey of by using traverses

intransitive verb

1 : to move back and forth or from side to side

2 : to move or turn laterally : swivel

3 a : to climb at an angle or in a zigzag course

b : to ski across rather than straight down a hill

4 : to make a survey by using traverses

—

traversable

play \-ˈvər-sə-bəl, -(ˌ)vər-\ adjective

—

traverser

noun

See traverse defined for English-language learners

Examples of traverse in a Sentence

The candidates traversed the state throughout the campaign.
The river traverses the county.

Recent Examples of traverse from the Web

Finger Lakes Trail Length: 580 miles Completion Time: 1 to 2 months Season: Spring through early fall Explore the best of rural New York, traversing through wine country and the Catskills.

— jonathan olivier, Outside Online, "The Best Thru-Hikes You've Never Heard Of," 14 May 2018
In Showtime’s remarkable, decades-traversing new miniseries Patrick Melrose, Cumberbatch’s boarding-school anticharisma neatly coincides with a character who holds the world at arm’s length.

— daniel d'addario, Time, "Benedict Cumberbatch Soulfully Portrays a Fallen Aristocrat in Patrick Melrose," 10 May 2018
Researchers have also demonstrated that alpha-synuclein fibers, injected into the gastrointestinal tracts of rodents, can traverse through the vagus into the brain.

— diana kwon, Scientific American, "Does Parkinson’s Begin in the Gut?," 8 May 2018
According to court documents, Moore went to extreme lengths to do what tens of thousands of travelers only dream about — traversing airport security as quickly as possible.

— michael gordon, charlotteobserver, "An airline employee tried to bypass security. He got 14 months in prison instead. | Charlotte Observer," 20 Apr. 2018
Propelled by a bicyclist from behind, wealthy vacationers sat in the wheelchairs while traversing Palm Beach during the early 1900s.

— skyler swisher, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Melania Trump, Akie Abe visit Flagler Museum," 18 Apr. 2018
After nearly nine hours spent traversing 354 brutal miles in an all-pink ½ 1600 buggy, Richardson and her Journee Racing team won the race in the ½ 1600 class.

— Ramona Sentinel, "Off-road racer goes extra mile for breast cancer awareness," 4 Apr. 2018
Since then, the G90 has been spending some quality time at our home base, largely traversing the Ann Arbor/Detroit/Toledo axis of power.

— andrew wendler, Car and Driver, "2017 Genesis G90," 5 Mar. 2018
Khalili, who was formerly focused on designing high-rises in Los Angeles and Tehran, spent five years traversing the Iranian desert via motorcycle to learn how indigenous communities lived and built.

— amy louise bailey, Vogue, "Originally Designed for Life on Mars, These Homes Could Redefine Sustainable Architecture," 2 Feb. 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of traverse

Middle English, from Anglo-French traverser, from Late Latin transversare, from Latin transversus

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 5a

See Words from the same year

traverse Synonyms

Synonyms

course, cover, cross, cut (across), follow, go, navigate, pass (over), perambulate, peregrinate, proceed (along), track, transit, travel;

Related Words

hike, traipse, tramp, tread, walk;

ride, run;

crisscross;

traverse

noun tra·verse \ ˈtra-vərs also -ˌvərs , especially for senses 6 and 8 also trə-ˈ or tra-ˈ \

Definition of traverse

1 : something that crosses or lies across

2 : obstacle, adversity

3 : a formal denial of a matter of fact alleged by the opposing party in a legal pleading

4 a : a compartment or recess formed by a partition, curtain, or screen

b : a gallery or loft providing access from one side to another in a large building

5 : a route or way across or over: such as

a : a zigzag course of a sailing ship with contrary winds

b : a curving or zigzag way up a steep grade

c : the course followed in traversing

6 : the act or an instance of traversing : crossing

7 : a protective projecting wall or bank of earth in a trench

8 a : a lateral movement (as of the saddle of a lathe carriage); also : a device for imparting such movement

b : the lateral movement of a gun about a pivot or on a carriage to change direction of fire

9 : a line surveyed across a plot of ground

See traverse defined for kids

Recent Examples of traverse from the Web

Shiffrin was the 19th skier to go down the hill and ended the run 1.98 seconds behind Vonn after looking shaky coming out of the first traverse.

— jason duaine hahn, PEOPLE.com, "Mikaela Shiffrin Wins Silver in Olympic Face-Off With Lindsey Vonn at Women's Alpine Combined Race," 22 Feb. 2018
Kilmer last week helped cut the ribbon on Amtrak's new Freighthouse Square station, within his district, which the new $181 million bypass traverses.

— josh farley, USA TODAY, "Washington officials remain committed to bypass, site of deadly train derailment," 19 Dec. 2017
Analyses by the team, including carbon dating, suggest that the excreta dug up at the Traversette site could date to well within the ballpark of the Punic forces’ traverse.

— Smithsonian, "How (and Where) Did Hannibal Cross the Alps?," 29 July 2017
The route also crosses seven bridges—including a three-wire bridge and a Tyrolean traverse (basically a horizontal zipline in which climbers clip onto a rope or wire and pull themselves across).

— jennifer billock, Smithsonian, "Climb a 2,500-Rung Ladder Up New Zealand’s Towering Twin Falls," 19 Oct. 2017
The blue swath on my westernmost map — the Bering Strait, endpoint of my traverse — stretches south to encompass my former hometown of Nome.

— michael engelhard, Alaska Dispatch News, "Traversing the Brooks Range, step by revealing step," 9 Sep. 2017
Analyses by the team, including carbon dating, suggest that the excreta dug up at the Traversette site could date to well within the ballpark of the Punic forces’ traverse.

— Smithsonian, "How (and Where) Did Hannibal Cross the Alps?," 29 July 2017
Analyses by the team, including carbon dating, suggest that the excreta dug up at the Traversette site could date to well within the ballpark of the Punic forces’ traverse.

— Smithsonian, "How (and Where) Did Hannibal Cross the Alps?," 29 July 2017
Some climbers hire guides for the trip, and some of those guides rope up clients for tougher traverses.

— craig r. mccoy / staff writer, Philly.com, "Horror on the mountain," 12 July 2017

Origin and Etymology of traverse

Middle English travers, from Anglo-French travers (as in a travers, de travers across), from Latin transversum (as in in transversum set crosswise), neuter of transversus lying across; senses 5–9 in part from ¹traverse — more at ¹transverse

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

traverse

adjective tra·verse \ ˈtra-(ˌ)vərs , trə-ˈ , tra-ˈ \

Definition of traverse

: lying across : transverse

First Known Use of traverse

15th century

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

TRAVERSE Defined for English Language Learners

traverse

verb

Definition of traverse for English Language Learners

: to move across (an area)

TRAVERSE Defined for Kids

traverse

verb tra·verse \ trə-ˈvərs \

Definition of traverse for Students

traversed; traversing

: to pass through, across, or over

Law Dictionary

traverse

noun tra·verse \ ˈtra-ˌvərs, trə-ˈvərs \

legal Definition of traverse

: a denial of a matter of fact alleged in the opposing party's pleadings; also : a pleading in which such a denial is made

traverse

transitive verb tra·verse \ trə-ˈvərs, ˈtra-ˌvərs \

legal Definition of traverse

: to deny (as an allegation of fact or an indictment) in a legal proceeding

Origin and Etymology of traverse

Anglo-French traverser, literally, to lay across, bar, impede, from Old French, from Late Latin transversare to cross, from Latin transversus lying across