crossroad

[kraws-rohd, kros-]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR crossroad ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a road that crosses another road, or one that runs transversely to main roads.

a by-road.

Often crossroads. (used with a singular or plural verb)

the place where roads intersect.
a point at which a vital decision must be made.
a main center of activity.

RELATED WORDS

crisis, pass

Nearby words

Origin of crossroad

First recorded in 1710–20; cross- + road

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for crossroads

The city served as a crossroads for African, Mediterranean, and Middle Eastern cultures.
Egypt Ain’t The Only Pyramid Show In Town|Nina Strochlic|December 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The Internet, ever becoming a greater part of the human experience, is at a crossroads, Dwyer argues in his book.
How Four Upstarts Built and Crashed the Anti-Facebook|Jake Whitney|November 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Earlier in the year, according to conservative sources, Adelson gave close to $20 million to Crossroads GPS.
Casino Tycoon Sheldon Adelson Takes $100 Million Gamble on GOP Senate|Peter Stone|September 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In 2010, for instance, the RJC sent a $4 million check to Crossroads GPS.
Casino Tycoon Sheldon Adelson Takes $100 Million Gamble on GOP Senate|Peter Stone|September 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Bigger than ever, the sport is at a crossroads, teetering between reverence for its healing past and fear of a pain-filled future.
A Millennium After Inventing the Game, the Iroquois Are Lacrosse’s New Superpower|Evin Demirel|July 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And so the thing was settled, and as soon as he could settle his affairs at Crossroads he was to go to Austin.
Mistress Anne|Temple Bailey
Why, there are crossroads up in Sullivan County that would seem like the Tenderloin alongside of that place.
Shorty McCabe|Sewell Ford
The face is a signboard showing which way the man or woman is traveling, which of life's crossroads they are on.
Watch Yourself Go By|Al. G. Field
We had one right here at our crossroads over a hundred and thirty years old, and still turning out its hundred per cent.
Kit of Greenacre Farm|Izola Forrester
After passing crossroads 561 you go about 150 yards without seeing the connecting file in rear of you.
Military Instructors Manual|James P. Cole and Oliver Schoonmaker

British Dictionary definitions for crossroads

crossroads

noun (functioning as singular)

an area or the point at which two or more roads cross each other

the point at which an important choice has to be made (esp in the phrase at the crossroads)

crossroad

noun US and Canadian

a road that crosses another road

Also called: crossway a road that crosses from one main road to another

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

Word Origin and History for crossroads

crossroads

1795, in figurative sense of "a turning point, a moment of decision;" from crossroad. In U.S., used for "a crossroads and little more; small, dull town" by 1845.

crossroad

1719, from cross (adj.) + road.