transverse
Americanadjective
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lying or extending across or in a cross direction; cross.
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(of a flute) having a mouth hole in the side of the tube, near its end, across which the player's breath is directed.
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(of an automotive engine) mounted with the crankshaft oriented sideways.
noun
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something that is transverse.
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Nautical. web frame.
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Geometry. transverse axis.
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a city road that cuts through a park or other area of light traffic; shortcut.
adjective
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crossing from side to side; athwart; crossways
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geometry denoting the axis that passes through the foci of a hyperbola
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(of a flute, etc) held almost at right angles to the player's mouth, so that the breath passes over a hole in the side to create a vibrating air column within the tube of the instrument
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astronomy another word for tangential
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of transverse
First recorded in 1610–20, transverse is from the Latin word trānsversus going or lying across, athwart. See traverse
Explanation
If something is transverse it goes sideways or at an angle. You might take a transverse path cutting across the park — it's a short cut if you're in a hurry, because you don't have to walk the entire length. First used in the 1590s, the adjective transverse comes from the Latin word transvertere, which combines the prefix trans-, meaning "across," and vertere, meaning "to turn." Something that's transverse cuts across something. A doctor may make a transverse incision into a patient's abdomen during an appendectomy. Set between two buildings, a dark alley is transverse to the bustling city street.
Vocabulary lists containing transverse
Waves and Wave Properties - Introductory
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Waves and Wave Properties - Middle School
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Physics - Introductory
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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.
The 45-year-old Memphis resident was diagnosed in 2005 with transverse myelitis, a neurological disorder that left her nearly immobile.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
The strongest transverse acceleration consistently points outward and appears near the outer boundary of the fireball.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 3, 2026
The trail seems to transverse through an ecotone, a transitional zone between plant communities, switching between high desert and pine forest ecosystems.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2025
Cashore spelled it correctly, then clinched the title with the word “transept,” an architectural term for the transverse part of a cross-shaped church.
From Seattle Times ● May 31, 2024
In order to clearly show you what they are, most of the diagrams in this course will show sound waves as if they are transverse waves.
From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones
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.
