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from one side to the other of:
a bridge across a river.
on or to the other side of; beyond:
across the sea.
into contact with; into the presence of, usually by accident:
to come across an old friend; to run across a first edition of byron.
crosswise of or transversely to the length of something; athwart:
coats across the bed; straddled across the boundary line.
from one side to another.
on the other side:
we’ll soon be across.
crosswise; transversely:
with arms across.
so as to be understood or learned:
he couldn’t get the idea across to the cl-ss.
into a desired or successful state:
to put a business deal across.
being in a or transverse position; crosswise:
an across pattern of supporting beams.
contemporary examples

the united states of america will always stand up for these aspirations, for our own people, and all across the world.
full text of obama’s speech to the un — update: video added justin green september 24, 2012

he never attended the large annual antiabortion rallies in lafayette park across the white house, always phoning in.
what reagan could tell the right matthew dallek november 13, 2009

across doel, traditional facades are painted with bright, modern art.
graffiti saved this belgian ghost town from government bulldozers nina strochlic june 19, 2014

olympia snowe is starring as hamlet these days, captivating and frustrating audiences in washington and across the country.
snowe removal samuel p. jacobs october 25, 2009

across the country, organizers of other major marathons expressed horror and empathy for partic-p-nts in the boston race.
running community in shock over boston marathon bombings eliza shapiro april 14, 2013

historical examples

“that is the ‘limited,’ across the platform,” explained rod politely.
cab and caboose kirk munroe

we’ll put it across that corner, and have the couch against that wall.
grace harlowe’s return to overton campus jessie graham flower

she has been sent on an errand, and wants to get across the street.
quiet talks on power s.d. gordon

you been seein’ that squirrel that’s been runnin’ across the clearin’?
way of the lawless max brand

and theodora rolled him across the floor to the fast-emptying basket.
teddy: her book anna chapin ray

preposition
from one side to the other side of
on or at the other side of
so as to transcend boundaries or barriers: people united across borders by religion and history, the study of linguistics across cultures
fully informed about; dealing with: we are across this problem
adverb
from one side to the other
on or to the other side
adv.

early 14c., acros, earlier a-croiz (c.1300), from anglo-french an cros “in a crossed position,” literally “on cross” (see cross (n.)). prepositional meaning “from one side to another” is first recorded 1590s; meaning “on the other side (as a result of crossing)” is from 1750. phrase across the board originally is from horse-racing, in reference to a bet of the same amount of money on a horse to win, place, or show.
in addition to the idiom beginning with
across
also see:

come across
cut across
get across
put across
run across