transit

[ tran-sit, -zit ]

/ ˈtræn sɪt, -zɪt /

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noun

the act or fact of passing across or through; passage from one place to another.

conveyance or transportation from one place to another, as of persons or goods, especially, local public transportation: city transit.Compare mass transit.

a transition or change.

Astronomy.

the passage of a heavenly body across the meridian of a given location or through the field of a telescope.
the passage of Mercury or Venus across the disk of the sun, or of a satellite or its shadow across the face of its primary.
meridian circle.

Astrology. the passage of a planet in aspect to another planet or a specific point in a horoscope.

Surveying.

Also called transit instrument. an instrument, as a theodolite, having a telescope that can be transited, used for measuring horizontal and sometimes vertical angles.
a repeating transit theodolite.

(initial capital letter)U.S. Aerospace. one of a series of satellites for providing positional data to ships and aircraft.

verb (used with object), tran·sit·ed, tran·sit·ing.

to pass across or through.

Surveying. to turn (the telescope of a transit) in a vertical plane in order to reverse direction; plunge.

Astronomy. to cross (a meridian, celestial body, etc.).

verb (used without object), tran·sit·ed, tran·sit·ing.

to pass over or through something; make a transit.

Astronomy. to make a transit across a meridian, celestial body, etc.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

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Origin of transit

1400–50; late Middle English (noun and v.) <Latin trānsitus a going across, passage, equivalent to trānsi-, variant stem of trānsīre to cross (trāns-trans- + -īre to go) + -tus suffix of v. action

Words nearby transit

transignification, transilient, transilluminate, transistor, transistorize, transit, transitable, transit camp, transit circle, transit instrument, transition

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

How to use transit in a sentence

While transit officials have spent the past six years reprioritizing safety over expansion and performance, Metro estimates it’s still about $5 billion behind where it should be.
Metro board expresses wariness over increased debt but gives tentative approval|Justin George|February 11, 2021|Washington Post
The transit system also will run more Yellow Line trains from Franconia-Springfield to Mount Vernon Square, Metro said.
Two Blue Line Metro stations to close through late May for platform work|Justin George|February 11, 2021|Washington Post
As of last June, it had 64 code compliance inspectors employed by MTS who issue citations for transit system and quality-of-life violations, and about 140 private security guards who could not write tickets.
MTS Review Recommends Changes, But Stops Short of Sweeping Assessments|Lisa Halverstadt|February 5, 2021|Voice of San Diego
Hart said Alexandria will have the capacity to drive all students who have said they want to return for in-person learning — but she still urged parents who can do so to pursue other methods of transit.
Alexandria City Public Schools sets date for reopening; Arlington refuses to follow suit|Hannah Natanson|February 5, 2021|Washington Post

States, in turn, could make those funds available to cash-strapped cities, counties and transit systems.
Battle over $1.9 trillion covid relief package is as much about political optics as economic necessity|Steven Pearlstein|February 3, 2021|Washington Post
Listen up, commuters—your public transit rides are about to get a lot less gross!
The Coolest Fashion Innovations of 2014|Raquel Laneri|December 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The paperwork was spotless: he had died in transit, the conjunction of a weak heart and long trip.
A Million Ways to Die in Prison|Daniel Genis|December 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Its method of transit is direct person-to-person contact with body fluids.
The Sham, Scaremongering Guide to Ebola|Abby Haglage|November 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
On top of the $8-10K salary, visa and transit costs will be covered.
$10,000 a Month for Ebola Fighters|Abby Haglage|October 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In Georgia, MARTA (the Metropolitan Atlantic Rapid Transit Authority) built a huge solar canopy at its bus depot in Decatur.
Paved Paradise|The Daily Beast|September 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When the reserve transfers are completed checks in transit can no longer count as reserves.
Readings in Money and Banking|Chester Arthur Phillips
Am I to check the number of rounds in the limbers; on the beaches and in transit during a battle?
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton
Since then the whole of the trade of transit by rail has been conducted by the companies owning the lines.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland|Joseph Tatlow
Two and a half months, plus half a month for delay, plus another month for sea transit, makes four months!
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton
High water takes place at eight hours and a half after the moon's transit.
Narrative of a Survey of the Intertropical and Western Coasts of Australia] [Volume 2 of 2]|Phillip Parker King

British Dictionary definitions for transit

transit

/ (ˈtrænsɪt, ˈtrænz-) /

noun

the passage or conveyance of goods or people
(as modifier)a transit visa

a change or transition

a route

astronomy

the passage of a celestial body or satellite across the face of a relatively larger body as seen from the earth
the apparent passage of a celestial body across the meridian, caused by the earth's diurnal rotation

astrology the passage of a planet across some special point on the zodiac

in transit while being conveyed; during passage

verb

to make a transit through or over (something)

astronomy to make a transit across (a celestial body or the meridian)

to cause (the telescope of a surveying instrument) to turn over or (of such a telescope) to be turned over in a vertical plane so that it points in the opposite direction

Derived forms of transit

transitable, adjective

Word Origin for transit

C15: from Latin transitus a going over, from transīre to pass over; see transient

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

Scientific definitions for transit

transit

[ trăn′sĭt ]

The passage of a smaller celestial body or its shadow across the disk of a larger celestial body. As observed from Earth, Mercury and Venus are the only planets of the solar system that make transits of the Sun, because they are the only planets with orbits that lie between Earth and the Sun. Mercury makes an average of 13 transits of the Sun each century. Transits of Venus across the Sun are much rarer, with only 7 of them having occurred between 1639 and 2004. In contrast, transits of Jupiter's moons across its disk are common occurrences. Compare occultation.

The passage of a celestial body across the celestial meridian (the great circle on the celestial sphere passing through the celestial poles and an observer's zenith). For any observer, the object is at its highest in the sky at its transit of the observer's meridian. See more at celestial meridian.

transit

Origin of transit

Words nearby transit

Words related to transit

How to use transit in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for transit

Derived forms of transit

Word Origin for transit

Scientific definitions for transit