verb (used with object), trav·ersed, trav·ers·ing.
- to pass or move over, along, or through.
- to go to and fro over or along.
- to extend across or over: A bridge traverses the stream.
- to go up, down, or across (a rope, mountain, hill, etc.) at an angle: The climbers traversed the east face of the mountain.
- to ski across (a hill or slope).
- to cause to move laterally.
- to look over, examine, or consider carefully; review; survey.
- to go counter to; obstruct; thwart.
- to contradict or deny.
- Law.
- (in the law of pleading) to deny formally (an allegation of fact set forth in a previous pleading).
- to join issue upon.
- to turn and point (a gun) in any direction.
verb (used without object), trav·ersed, trav·ers·ing.
- to pass along or go across something; cross: a point in the river where we could traverse.
- to ski across a hill or slope on a diagonal.
- to turn laterally, as a gun.
- Fencing. to glide the blade toward the hilt of the contestant’s foil while applying pressure to the blade.
noun
- the act of passing across, over, or through.
- something that crosses, obstructs, or thwarts; obstacle.
- a transversal or similar line.
- a place where one may traverse or cross; crossing.
- Architecture. a transverse gallery or loft of communication in a church or other large building.
- a bar, strip, rod, or other structural part placed or extending across; crosspiece; crossbar.
- a railing, lattice, or screen serving as a barrier.
- Nautical.
- the zigzag track of a vessel compelled by contrary winds or currents to sail on different courses.
- each of the runs in a single direction made in such sailing.
- Fortification.
- a defensive barrier, parapet, or the like, placed transversely.
- a defensive barrier thrown across the terreplein or the covered way of a fortification to protect it from enfilade fire.
- Gunnery. the horizontal turning of a gun so as to make it point in any required direction.
- Machinery.
- the motion of a lathe tool or grinding wheel along a piece of work.
- a part moving along a piece of work in this way, as the carriage of a lathe.
- Surveying. a series of intersecting surveyed lines whose lengths and angles of intersection, measured at instrument stations, are recorded graphically on a map and in numerical form in data tables.Compare closed traverse.
- Law. a formal denial of some matter of fact alleged by the other side.
adjective
- lying, extending, or passing across; transverse.
verb
- to pass or go over or back and forth over (something); cross
- (tr) to go against; oppose; obstruct
- to move or cause to move sideways or crosswise
- (tr) to extend or reach across
- to turn (an artillery gun) laterally on its pivot or mount or (of an artillery gun) to turn laterally
- (tr) to look over or examine carefully
- (tr) law to deny (an allegation of fact), as in pleading
- (intr) fencing to slide one’s blade towards an opponent’s hilt while applying pressure against his blade
- mountaineering to move across (a face) horizontally
- (tr) nautical to brace (a yard) fore and aft
noun
- something being or lying across, such as a transom
- a gallery or loft inside a building that crosses it
- maths another name for transversal (def. 1)
- an obstruction or hindrance
- fortifications a protective bank or other barrier across a trench or rampart
- a railing, screen, or curtain
- the act or an instance of traversing or crossing
- a path or road across
- nautical the zigzag course of a vessel tacking frequently
- law the formal denial of a fact alleged in the opposite party’s pleading
- surveying a survey consisting of a series of straight lines, the length of each and the angle between them being measured
- mountaineering a horizontal move across a face
adjective
- being or lying across; transverse
adverb
- an archaic word for across
v.early 14c., “pass across, over, or through,” from Old French traverser “to cross, thwart” (11c.), from Vulgar Latin *traversare, from Latin transversare “to cross, throw across,” from Latin transversus “turn across” (see transverse). The noun meaning “act of passing through a gate, crossing a bridge, etc.” is recorded from mid-14c.; meaning “a passage by which one may traverse” is recorded from 1670s. Military foritifcation sense of “barrier, barricade” is recorded from 1590s. Related: Traversed; traversing.