a section made by a plane cutting anything transversely, especially at right angles to the longest axis.
a piece so cut off.
a photograph, diagram, or other pictorial representation of such a section.
the act of cutting anything across.
a typical selection; a sample showing all characteristic parts, relationships, etc..
a cross section of American opinion.
Surveying. a vertical section of the ground surface taken at right angles to a survey line.
Also called nuclear cross section. Physics. a quantity expressing the effective area that a given nucleus presents as a target to a bombarding particle, giving a measure of the probability that the particle will induce a reaction.
maths a plane surface formed by cutting across a solid, esp perpendicular to its longest axis
a section cut off in this way
the act of cutting anything in this way
a random selection or sample, esp one regarded as representative
a cross section of the public
surveying a vertical section of a line of ground at right angles to a survey line
physics a measure of the probability that a collision process will result in a particular reaction. It is expressed by the effective area that one participant presents as a target for the other
First recorded in 1825–35
First recorded in 1875–80
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Some tracks are preserved on flat rock surfaces, while others appear in cross section within the cliffs.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 24, 2026
A broader cross section of thousands of fund returns make up commonly used performance indexes published by Cambridge Associates and MSCI.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 22, 2025
Louisiana that the Sixth Amendment demands a jury drawn from a representative cross section of the community.
From Slate ● Oct. 23, 2025
Ms Edwards said the 10 companies in attendance at Thursday's meeting covered a "cross section" of first-line direct suppliers, covering the "whole eco-system" of the supply chain.
From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2025
The subjects were chosen from across the country to represent an accurate cross section of American schoolchildren.
From "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven D. Levitt
A compelling model comes from the burgeoning global movement of citizens’ assemblies — deliberative bodies in which a randomly selected, representative cross-section of the public is convened to consider complex policy questions.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 6, 2026
A larger atmosphere presents a bigger cross-section to incoming starlight, allowing it to absorb more radiation.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 11, 2026
To find that ground, I recently sat down with Timothy Stratford, whose career serves as a cross-section of the U.S.-China story itself.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026
Cabbages, namely their undulating cross-section patterns, have appeared as designs in outerwear and accessories.
From Salon ● Feb. 21, 2026
“That's what’s going on,” he said, pointing to an illustrated cross-section of a shark.
From "The Line Tender" by Kate Allen
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
