SKIP TO CONTENT

crosswalk

crosswalks

A crosswalk is a marked walkway across a road or street. Crosswalks make it safer for pedestrians to cross the street.

Another term for a crosswalk is a "pedestrian crossing," a path for people to use when they cross the street. Some crosswalks are simply painted lines on the road, while others have traffic signals that show you when it's safe to cross. The earliest, 18th century version of a crosswalk was a path in a garden that cut across other paths, and by the 1850s it meant "pedestrian crossing."

Definitions of crosswalk
  1. noun
    a path (often marked) where something (as a street or railroad) can be crossed to get from one side to the other
    synonyms: crossing, crossover
    see moresee less
    types:
    show 4 types...
    hide 4 types...
    grade separation
    a crossing that uses an underpass or overpass
    pedestrian crossing, zebra crossing
    street crossing where pedestrians have right of way; often marked in some way (especially with diagonal stripes)
    pelican crossing
    an acronym for pedestrian light control; a pedestrian crossing with traffic lights that are controlled by pedestrians
    school crossing
    a pedestrian crossing where school children cross a street on the way to school
    type of:
    path
    a way especially designed for a particular use
DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘crosswalk'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback
Word Family
EDITOR'S CHOICE

Look up crosswalk for the last time

Close your vocabulary gaps with personalized learning that focuses on teaching the words you need to know.

VocabTrainer - Vocabulary.com's Vocabulary Trainer