traverse

[trav-ers, truh-vurs] /ˈtræv ərs, trəˈvɜrs/
verb (used with object), traversed, traversing.
1.
to pass or move over, along, or through.
2.
to go to and fro over or along.
3.
to extend across or over:
A bridge traverses the stream.
4.
to go up, down, or across (a rope, mountain, hill, etc.) at an angle:
The climbers traversed the east face of the mountain.
5.
to ski across (a hill or slope).
6.
to cause to move laterally.
7.
to look over, examine, or consider carefully; review; survey.
8.
to go counter to; obstruct; thwart.
9.
to contradict or deny.
10.
Law.
  1. (in the law of pleading) to deny formally (an allegation of fact set forth in a previous pleading).
  2. to join issue upon.
11.
to turn and point (a gun) in any direction.
verb (used without object), traversed, traversing.
12.
to pass along or go across something; cross:
a point in the river where we could traverse.
13.
to ski across a hill or slope on a diagonal.
14.
to turn laterally, as a gun.
15.
Fencing. to glide the blade toward the hilt of the contestant's foil while applying pressure to the blade.
noun
16.
the act of passing across, over, or through.
17.
something that crosses, obstructs, or thwarts; obstacle.
18.
a transversal or similar line.
19.
a place where one may traverse or cross; crossing.
20.
Architecture. a transverse gallery or loft of communication in a church or other large building.
21.
a bar, strip, rod, or other structural part placed or extending across; crosspiece; crossbar.
22.
a railing, lattice, or screen serving as a barrier.
23.
Nautical.
  1. the zigzag track of a vessel compelled by contrary winds or currents to sail on different courses.
  2. each of the runs in a single direction made in such sailing.
24.
Fortification.
  1. a defensive barrier, parapet, or the like, placed transversely.
  2. a defensive barrier thrown across the terreplein or the covered way of a fortification to protect it from enfilade fire.
25.
Gunnery. the horizontal turning of a gun so as to make it point in any required direction.
26.
Machinery.
  1. the motion of a lathe tool or grinding wheel along a piece of work.
  2. a part moving along a piece of work in this way, as the carriage of a lathe.
27.
Surveying. a series of intersecting surveyed lines whose lengths and angles of intersection, measured at instrument stations, are recorded graphically on a map and in numerical form in data tables.
Compare closed traverse.
28.
Law. a formal denial of some matter of fact alleged by the other side.
adjective
29.
lying, extending, or passing across; transverse.
Origin
1250-1300; (v.) Middle English traversen < Middle French traverser to cross < Late Latin trānsversāre, derivative of Latin trānsversus (see trans-, versus); (noun) Middle English travers(e) < Middle French traverse (< Latin trānsversa something lying across, feminine of trānsversus) and travers (< Latin trānsversum passage across, neuter of trānsversus)
Related forms
traversable, adjective
traversal, noun
traverser, noun
nontraversable, adjective
retraverse, verb, retraversed, retraversing.
untraversable, adjective
untraversed, adjective
Synonyms
1. cross. 9. gainsay, dispute, challenge.
Examples from the web for traversing
  • For example an electron jumps from orbit to orbit in an atom without traversing the space between orbits.
  • In some cases diffraction of light traversing apparently empty space has also been attributed to the presence of dark matter.
  • Describes the difficulty of traversing the ice floes.
  • The road levelled off at a fork, the wider path continuing to descend, a narrower one traversing the slope.
  • These obstacles mean nothing when traversing bodies of water with a good set of river shoes.
  • It's preprogrammed to scuttle around quickly on smooth surfaces and slow down when traversing carpet.
  • The situation is a little different on the particular mesa we're traversing, though.
  • The space between us and them has stretched, and the light traversing that space has also stretched, making it look redder.
  • He glimpses the dawning of self- conception not in the stresses of communal living but in the perils of traversing treetops.
  • So if a photon strikes our radio telescope it has a quantum amplitude for traversing one path or the other.
British Dictionary definitions for traversing

traverse

/ˈtrævɜːs; trəˈvɜːs/
verb
1.
to pass or go over or back and forth over (something); cross
2.
(transitive) to go against; oppose; obstruct
3.
to move or cause to move sideways or crosswise
4.
(transitive) to extend or reach across
5.
to turn (an artillery gun) laterally on its pivot or mount or (of an artillery gun) to turn laterally
6.
(transitive) to look over or examine carefully
7.
(transitive) (law) to deny (an allegation of fact), as in pleading
8.
(intransitive) (fencing) to slide one's blade towards an opponent's hilt while applying pressure against his blade
9.
(mountaineering) to move across (a face) horizontally
10.
(transitive) (nautical) to brace (a yard) fore and aft
noun
11.
something being or lying across, such as a transom
12.
a gallery or loft inside a building that crosses it
13.
(maths) another name for transversal (sense 1)
14.
an obstruction or hindrance
15.
(fortifications) a protective bank or other barrier across a trench or rampart
16.
a railing, screen, or curtain
17.
the act or an instance of traversing or crossing
18.
a path or road across
19.
(nautical) the zigzag course of a vessel tacking frequently
20.
(law) the formal denial of a fact alleged in the opposite party's pleading
21.
(surveying) a survey consisting of a series of straight lines, the length of each and the angle between them being measured
22.
(mountaineering) a horizontal move across a face
adjective
23.
being or lying across; transverse
adverb
24.
an archaic word for across
Derived Forms
traversable, adjective
traversal, noun
traverser, noun
Word Origin
C14: from Old French traverser, from Late Latin trānsversāre, from Latin trānsversustransverse
Word Origin and History for traversing

traverse

v.

early 14c., "pass across, over, or through," from Old French traverser "to cross, thwart" (11c.), from Vulgar Latin *traversare, from Latin transversare "to cross, throw across," from Latin transversus "turn across" (see transverse). The noun meaning "act of passing through a gate, crossing a bridge, etc." is recorded from mid-14c.; meaning "a passage by which one may traverse" is recorded from 1670s. Military foritifcation sense of "barrier, barricade" is recorded from 1590s. Related: Traversed; traversing.