“Over the river and through the woods” certainly gets the idea of Christmas across, doesn’t it?
It’s that across vs over confusion that’s the worst. But, we’ll get through it.
All three words are adjectives, adverbs, and prepositions with across and over being the most confused.
Across “means on the other side of a flat surface area, or from one side to the other of something which has sides or limits such as a city, road, or river” Hoang.
Over is used when talking about a period of time or referring to something at a higher position than something else, sometimes involving movement from one side to another.
Through is used when moving from one side to another in a surrounding environment.
| across | moving from side to side over a flat surface | They had to go across the river to get to their house.
I ran across the street. Juliana folded her arms across her chest. He’s from across the pond. |
|---|---|---|
| over | refer to something at a higher position than something else, sometimes involving movement from one side to another | We walked over the bridge in the misty morning.
She jumped over the bed. He climbed over the wall. |
| when talking about periods of time | I haven’t seen Tom much over the last three years.
It took them over thee weeks to prepare the restaurant for the ball. |
|
| through | moving from one side to another in a surrounding environment | I could feel the thorns on my skin, but I managed to make my way through the bushes.
The Red Riding Hood went through the woods to get to her grandma’s house. |
Exploring Later . . .
If you’re curious, you may want to explore “Break Through versus Breakthrough” and/or “Threw versus Through” as well.
Word Confusions . . .
. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.
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| Across | Over | Through |
|---|---|---|
Hands Across the Divide, a sculpture in Derry, Ireland, by diego_cue is under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons. |
Bird Flying Over Mountains by Julia Revitt is under the CC0 1.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons. |
Trail Through Thin Forest by David Baron is under the CC BY-SA 2.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons. |
| Part of Grammar: | ||
| Adjective; Adverb; Preposition | Adjective 1; Adverb 1; Noun 1; Prefix; Preposition 1
Plural for the noun: overs |
Adjective; Adverb; Preposition |
| Adjective: Being in a crossed or transverse position
Adverb:
Used to express position or orientation Referring to a crossword answer which reads horizontally Preposition: Expressing position or orientation in relation to (an area or passage) |
Adjective: Finished or complete 1
Adverb:
Beyond and falling or hanging from a point Used to express action and result Used to express repetition of a process [In two-way radio communication] Used to indicate that the speaker has finished speaking and is awaiting a reply Noun: Prefix:
Upper
Indicating superior rank Indicating movement downwards Preposition:
At a higher level or layer than
Higher than or more than (a specified number or quantity) Expressing passage or trajectory across
Expressing duration By means of
On the subject of No longer affected by
|
Adjective: [Attrib.; of a means of public transportation or a ticket] Continuing or valid to the final destination [Attrib.] Denoting traffic that passes from one side of a place to another in the course of a longer journey
[Attrib.; of a room] Running the whole length of a building [Predic.; informal] Having no prospect of any future relationship, dealings, or success Adverb:
Continuing in time toward completion of a process or period
So as to inspect all or part of a collection, inventory, or publication
So as to be connected by telephone Preposition:
Continuing in time toward completion of a process or period
So as to inspect all or part of a collection, inventory, or publication [North American] Up to and including a particular point in an ordered sequence By means of a process or intermediate stage
|
| Examples: | ||
| Adjective: He used an across pattern of supporting beams. She stood with her arms across. “According to astronomers who captured this image, the comet’s tail was several times longer at this point than Earth is across” (Carlson). Adverb: It was a crater some 30 feet across. He looked across at me, and we burst out laughing. Halfway across, Jenny jumped. What’s 19 across? She sat across from me. Preposition: She is traveling across the US on a promotional tour. They lived across the street from one another. Take the bridge across the river. |
Adjective: Honey, we have to go. The match is over. The danger is not completely over. It was a bad period of my life, but it’s all over now. Skiing is so over, and snowboarding is passé! Adverb: Hey, over here. Come over and cheer us up. The boat was listing over at an acute angle. The car flipped over. Hand the money over. He’s done it twice over already. The sums will have to be done over again. “Atlanta Center, Duke Four One Romeo, request V-F-R traffic advisories, Twenty Northwest Rome, seven thousand five hundred, over” (Section). Noun: Only the six legal balls are counted in an over. “If a bowler is incapacitated or suspended during an over, another bowler shall complete the over from the same end, provided that he/she does not bowl two overs consecutively, nor bowl parts of each of two consecutive overs, in that innings” (MCC). Prefix: You can’t be too overcareful. You’re oversimplifying the issue! He used firepower to overawe the hostile tribes. She was overjoyed at the news. Be sure to wear your overcoat. The game went into overtime. Our overhead is miniscule. Dang, it’s overcast. Watch out for the overhang. He’s overthrown it. Who’s the overseer? Preposition: There was an oxygen tent over Jamie’s bed. Ideally, you would ladle this sauce over fresh pasta. There were great views over Hyde Park. He’s watching a television hanging over the bar. Over him is the financial director. I want editorial control over what is included. I’d choose the well-known brand over that one. There was a slight predominance of boys over girls. He shouted over the noise of the taxis. It was over 40 degrees C. They have lived together for over a year. She trudged over the lawn. The car toppled over the cliff. Over the hill is a small village. She told me over coffee. Inventories have been refined over many years. Suddenly, a voice came over the loudspeaker. There was a heated debate over unemployment. We were over the worst. Now it’s finished, and even though I am totally over him, I’m wondering whether I should pay him a surprise visit. I’m over all of this snow! |
Adjective: I would prefer a through ticket. Dang, it’s not a through street. Her bedroom went through the house from front to back. That swimmer is through as an athlete. Adverb: She stood back to allow him to pass through. He looked right through her. He opened the door and went through. He warmed the leftovers clear through. We saw the matter through. I’ve already read your manuscript through five times. We went through all the boxes and couldn’t find it. Did you come through your publisher? Caller? Your call is through. Preposition: She pushed her nail through her stocking. He drove right through the crowd. It was as if he could see me through the door. They managed to drive through the tunnel before it collapsed. He was through with her. She stayed up through the night, terrified. We are through the initial testing period. She succeeded through hard work. The editor read through his article. She went up the elevator and through two doors to find him. Run the figures through the computer. She bought the antique vase through a dealer. |
| Derivatives: | ||
| Adjective: overcompensatory, overcomplicated, overelaborate Adverb: overelaborately, overly Noun: over-under, overachievement, overachiever, overbalance overcompensation, overdetermination, overelaborateness, overelaboration, overestimate, overexposure, overlay Verb: overbalance Verb, intransitive: overachieve, overanalysis, overcharge, overcompensate, overdrink, overeat, overemphasise [British], overemphasize Verb, transitive: over-egg, overanalyze, overbake, overbought, overbuy, overcharge, overcomplicate, overcook, overdetermine, overdo, overdone, overdramatise [British], overdramatize, overelaborate, overestimate, overexpose, overfed, overfeed, overfly, overlaid, overlay And the over-s go on and on and on . . . |
Adjective: throughother Adverb: throughother, throughout Noun: throughball, throughflow, throughfall, throughput, throughway, thruway Preposition: throughout |
|
| Phrasal Verb | ||
| come across come across somebody come across something cut across get across happen across keep across put across put oneself across run across stumble across take across |
bend over bowl over boil over check over chew over do over double over fall over get over, go over hand over heal over hold over ice over knock over lay over look over make over mouse over paper over pass over pull one over read over run over screw over sleep over step over smooth over take over tide over walk all over watch over work over And a ton more on Wiktionary. |
breeze through check through come through cut through draw through fall through flick through follow through get through heat through lead through leaf through live through look through muddle through nod through pass through plow through put through ran through read through sail through scrape through shoot through slip through talk through wade through work through And more on Wiktionary. |
| History of the Word: | ||
| Middle English as an adverb meaning in the form of a cross from the Old French a croix, en croix meaning in or on a cross, later regarded as being from a (indefinite article) + cross. | Old English ofer is of Germanic origin and related to the Dutch over and the German über, from an Indo-European word (originally a comparative of the element represented by -ove in above) which is also the base of the Latin super and the Greek huper. | Old English thurh is of Germanic origin and related to the Dutch door and the German durch.
The spelling change to thr- appears c. 1300, becoming standard from Caxton (one of the first printers in England in the late 1400s and determined to standardize English) onward. |
C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!
Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.
Resources for Across vs Over vs Through
Some of these links may be affiliate links, and I will earn a small percentage, if you should buy it. It does not affect the price you pay.
“Across vs Over vs Through.” My Lingua Academy. My English Teacher.co.uk. 22 May 2019. Web. 8 May 2023. <https://myenglishteacher.co.uk/2019/05/22/across-vs-over-vs-through/>.
Apple Dictionary.com
Carlson, Erika K. “The Best Pictures of Interstellar Comet Borisov as It Approached the Sun.” Discover Magazine. 11 Dec 2019. Web. 8 May 2023. <https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/the-best-pictures-of-interstellar-comet-borisov-as-it-approached-the-sun>.
“Category: English Phrasal Verbs with Particle (Across).” Wiktionary. 15 Aug 2021. Web. 9 May 2023. <https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Category:English_phrasal_verbs_with_particle_(across)>.
“Category: English Phrasal Verbs with Particle (Over).” Wiktionary. 15 Aug 2021. Web. 9 May 2023. <https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Category:English_phrasal_verbs_with_particle_(over)>.
“Category: English Phrasal Verbs with Particle (Through).” Wiktionary. 15 Aug 2021. Web. 9 May 2023. <https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Category:English_phrasal_verbs_with_particle_(through)>.
Dictionary.com: over
The Free Dictionary.com: through
Hoang, Tran Son. “Talk About Across, Over, and Through.” Medium.com. 8 Apr 2020. Web. 9 May 2023. <https://medium.com/persons/talk-about-across-over-and-through-648535fd36c2>.
Merriam-Webster: across
“The Over: Scoring Runs, Dead Ball, and Extras.” Laws. Marylebone Cricket Club. The Lords.org. 2017. Web. 8 May 2023. <https://www.lords.org/mcc/the-laws-of-cricket/the-over>.
“Section 2. Radio Communications Phraseology
and Techniques.” chapt 4. Air Traffic Control. FAA.gov. n.d. Web. 8 May 2023. <https://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/atpubs/aim_html/chap4_section_2.html>.
Pinterest Photo Credits:
Image from page 38 of Three Vassar Girls in South America, courtesy of Internet Archive Book Images is under the CC0 1.0 license, via Flickr.
