transgress
Americanverb (used without object)
-
transgresses,
present (3rd person singular)
-
transgressed,
past participle, past
-
transgressing
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
transgresses,
present (3rd person singular)
-
transgressed,
past participle, past
-
transgressing
present participle
-
to pass over or go beyond (a limit, boundary, etc.).
to transgress bounds of prudence.
-
to go beyond the limits imposed by (a law, command, etc.); violate; infringe.
to transgress the will of God.
- Synonyms:
- disobey, contravene
- Antonyms:
- obey
verb
-
to break (a law, rule, etc)
-
to go beyond or overstep (a limit)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
transgressornoun
-
nontransgressiveadjective
-
transgressiveadjective
-
untransgressedadjective
-
nontransgressivelyadverb
-
transgressivelyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
transgresssimple
-
transgressessimple
-
have transgressedperfect
-
has transgressedperfect
-
am transgressingprogressive
-
are transgressingprogressive
-
is transgressingprogressive
-
have been transgressingperfect progressive
-
has been transgressingperfect progressive
Past
-
transgressedsimple
-
had transgressedperfect
-
was transgressingprogressive
-
were transgressingprogressive
-
had been transgressingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of transgress
First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin trānsgressus (past participle of trānsgredī “to step across”), equivalent to trāns- trans- + -gred- (combining form of gradī “to step”; see grade) + -tus past participle suffix, with dt becoming ss
Explanation
When you go beyond the boundaries, either physically or morally, you transgress. A river will transgress its banks as it floods, and students who cheat transgress school rules. Transgress sounds like and means nearly the same thing as trespass. When you transgress a rule, you're breaking it. Religions often talk about transgressing: for Christians, breaking a commandment is transgressing against God by violating his wishes. Any transgression is pushing through a boundary: like a neighbor transgressing by letting their dog into your yard: that's a physical and a legal type of transgressing. The dog got into your territory, and the owners broke a rule.
Vocabulary lists containing transgress
Antigone
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Twelfth Night
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Vocabulary from the Magna Carta on its 800th Anniversary
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Taboos became the norm, permission to transgress was extended to everyone and “what was once unthinkable became the only way to think about anything.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
It matters less to me that we transgress, that we fall back or fall prey to our lesser angels.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 17, 2025
Taking these points together, it becomes clear that the ordinary bounds of judicial review are capacious, and it would be extraordinarily rare for a state court to transgress them.
From Slate ● Sep. 19, 2024
That was hardly a fringe view in the progressive ethos of the Bay Area, where he was based, though he still managed to transgress the boundaries on a regular basis.
From New York Times ● Jun. 3, 2024
It soon became clear that there were limits beyond which one could not transgress on the Manhattan.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
It just said there might be an egregious example “when a state court transgresses the bounds of ordinary judicial review.”
From Salon ● May 11, 2024
But the idea that because an opponent transgresses a norm the standard no longer applies to anyone is a perversion of principle.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 7, 2022
“How do you know who you are when your primal love bond is formed with someone who then transgresses and violates it?”
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 2021
“In her music, as in her poetry, film and Conceptual art, she constantly transgresses and mutates the form,” Ms. Munroe added.
From New York Times ● Oct. 27, 2016
The most important point is the form and proportions of the structure, as to which the modern builder of obelisks transgresses greatly.
From History of the Washington National Monument and of the Washington National Monument Society by Frederick Loviad Harvey
Duckett said it's "not a secret" that professionalism is something he's "struggled with throughout my career" but has always been willing to "hold his hands up" when he's transgressed.
From BBC ● Mar. 27, 2026
Battle lines are drawn and immediately transgressed in a play that takes farce out of the bedroom and into administrative corridors and cubicles.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 7, 2025
Some of the breakfast sandwiches transgressed in ruinous ways: served with aggressively flavored aioli, served on a bagel out of a plastic bag, served with arugula, which, friends, only gets distressingly wilty-slimy in this format.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 14, 2023
As in Europe, those persecuted as witches in the colonies were commonly poor and marginalized, but women who transgressed Puritan behavioral norms or who attained wealth or property were also at risk.
From Scientific American ● May 31, 2023
She doubted whether she had not transgressed the duty of woman by woman, in betraying her suspicions of Jane Fairfax’s feelings to Frank Churchill.
From "Emma" by Jane Austen
“Already in that early school exercise, he was transgressing all the principles that we knew.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2024
The move involved no stepping on necks and no transgressing of hierarchies and Lee had plenty of support, but when it came time to vote on her promotion, she was outmaneuvered.
From Slate ● Mar. 5, 2024
On the other hand, with “Alice Sadie Celine,” we are not talking about transgressing the long-gone mores of the 1950s and ’60s.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 25, 2023
The lawsuit also claims that Chop’t did not dispute the fine, which was for transgressing a rule that food service establishments must “operate their premises in such a way as to avoid imminent health hazards.”
From Washington Times ● Nov. 28, 2023
I know I am transgressing, but, I assure you, the occasion warrants it.
From Lost Man's Lane A Second Episode in the Life of Amelia Butterworth by Anna Katharine Green
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.
