3 VERB Lines or roads that cross meet and go across each other. □ [V ] …the intersection where Main and Center Streets cross. □ [V n] It is near where the pilgrimage route crosses the road to Quimper.
4 VERB If someone or something crosses a limit or boundary, for example the limit of acceptable behaviour, they go beyond it. □ [V n] I normally never write into magazines but Mr Stubbs has finally crossed the line.
5 VERB If an expression crosses someone's face, it appears briefly on their face. [WRITTEN ] □ [V n] Berg tilts his head and a mischievous look crosses his face.
6 N‑COUNT A cross is a shape that consists of a vertical line or piece with a shorter horizontal line or piece across it. It is the most important Christian symbol. □ Round her neck was a cross on a silver chain.
7 VERB If Christians cross themselves , they make the sign of a cross by moving their hand across the top half of their body. □ [V pron-refl] 'Holy Mother of God!' Marco crossed himself.
8 N‑COUNT If you describe something as a cross that someone has to bear, you mean it is a problem or disadvantage which they have to deal with or bear. □ Two young men perishing in such circumstances is a hard cross to bear for each family.
9 N‑COUNT A cross is a written mark in the shape of an X. You can use it, for example, to indicate that an answer to a question is wrong, to mark the position of something on a map, or to indicate your vote on a ballot paper. □ Put a tick next to those activities you like and a cross next to those you dislike.
10 VERB If you cross your arms, legs, or fingers, you put one of them on top of the other. □ [V n] Jill crossed her legs and rested her chin on one fist, as if lost in deep thought. □ [V -ed] He was sitting there in the living room with his legs crossed.
11 VERB If you cross someone who is likely to get angry, you oppose them or refuse to do what they want. □ [V n] If you ever cross him, forget it, you're finished.
12 N‑SING Something that is a cross between two things is neither one thing nor the other, but a mixture of both. □ [+ between ] It was a lovely dog. It was a cross between a collie and a golden retriever.
13 N‑COUNT In some team sports such as football and hockey, a cross is the passing of the ball from the side of the field to a player in the centre, usually in front of the goal. □ He hit an accurate cross to Groves.
14 ADJ [ADJ n] A cross street is a road that crosses another more important road. [AM ] □ The Army boys had personnel carriers blockading the cross streets.
15 → see also crossing
16 to cross your fingers → see finger
17 cross my heart → see heart
18 to cross your mind → see mind ➊
19 people's paths cross → see path
20 to cross the Rubicon → see Rubicon
21 to cross swords → see sword
▸ cross off PHRASAL VERB If you cross off words on a list, you decide that they no longer belong on the list, and often you draw a line through them to indicate this. □ [V P n] I checked the chart and found I had crossed off the wrong thing. □ [V n P n] They have enough trouble finding nutritious food without crossing meat off their shopping lists. [Also V n P ]
▸ cross out PHRASAL VERB If you cross out words on a page, you draw a line through them, because they are wrong or because you want to change them. □ [V P n] He crossed out 'fellow subjects', and instead inserted 'fellow citizens'. [Also V n P ]
➋ cross /krɒ s, [AM ] krɔː s/ (crosser , crossest ) ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] Someone who is cross is rather angry or irritated. □ [+ with ] I'm terribly cross with him. □ [+ about ] She was rather cross about having to trail across London. ● cross|ly ADV [ADV with v] □ 'No, no, no,' Morris said crossly. SYNONYMS cross ADJ ➋1
angry: Are you angry with me for some reason?
irritated: Not surprisingly, her teacher is getting irritated with her.
annoyed: She tapped her forehead and looked annoyed with herself.
grumpy: Some folk think I'm a grumpy old man.
peevish: Aubrey had slept little and that always made him peevish.
cross|bar /krɒ sbɑː r , [AM ] krɔː s-/ (crossbars )
1 N‑COUNT A crossbar is a horizontal piece of wood attached to two upright pieces, for example a part of the goal in football.
2 N‑COUNT The crossbar of a man's or boy's bicycle is the horizontal metal bar between the handlebars and the saddle.
cross|bones /krɒ sboʊnz, [AM ] krɔː s-/ → see skull and crossbones
cro ss-bo rder
1 ADJ [ADJ n] Cross-border trade occurs between companies in different countries. □ Currency-conversion costs remain one of the biggest obstacles to cross-border trade.
2 ADJ [ADJ n] Cross-border attacks involve people crossing a border and going a short way into another country. □ …a cross-border raid into Zambian territory.
cross|bow /krɒ sboʊ, [AM ] krɔː s-/ (crossbows ) N‑COUNT A crossbow is a weapon consisting of a small, powerful bow that is fixed across a piece of wood, and aimed like a gun.
cro ss-breed (cross-breeds , cross-breeding , cross-bred ) also crossbreed
1 VERB If one species of animal or plant cross-breeds with another, they reproduce, and new or different animals or plants are produced. You can also say that someone cross-breeds something such as an animal or plant. □ [V + with ] By cross-breeding with our native red deer, the skia deer have affected the gene pool. □ [V n + with ] Unfortunately attempts to crossbreed it with other potatoes have been unsuccessful. □ [V n] More farmers are creating hybrid crops by cross-breeding existing fruits. □ [V -ed] …a cross-bred labrador. [Also V ]