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across-the-board

[ uh-kraws-thuh-bawrd, -bohrd, uh-kros- ]
/ əˈkrɔs ðəˈbɔrd, -ˈboʊrd, əˈkrɒs- /
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adjective
applying to all employees, members, groups, or categories; general: The across-the-board pay increase means a raise for all employees.
(of a bet) covering all possibilities of winning on a given result, especially by placing a combination bet on one horse in a race for win, place, and show.
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Origin of across-the-board

First recorded in 1940–45

Words nearby across-the-board

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use across-the-board in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for across-the-board

across-the-board

adjective
(of salary increases, taxation cuts, etc) affecting all levels or classes equally
horse racing the US term for each way
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with across-the-board

across the board

Applying to all the individuals in a group, as in They promised us an across-the-board tax cut, that is, one applying to all taxpayers, regardless of income. This expression comes from horse racing, where it refers to a bet that covers all possible ways of winning money on a race: win (first), place (second), or show (third). The board here is the notice-board on which the races and betting odds are listed. Its figurative use dates from the mid-1900s.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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