What does crossroad mean?
A crossroad is literally a road that runs across another road, meeting it at an intersection; by extension, and far more commonly in its plural form, it denotes the place where two or more roads converge. The word belongs to ordinary, practical vocabulary — used in driving directions, rural descriptions, and everyday speech about getting from place to place. Its plural counterpart, 'crossroads', has taken on a rich figurative life: to be 'at a crossroads' is to face a decisive turning point, whether in a career, a relationship, or history itself. The singular 'crossroad' retains a plain, concrete character and appears most naturally in descriptions of physical geography — 'the church stood near the crossroad' — rather than in metaphorical contexts. Because 'crossroads' dominates modern usage, the singular can sound slightly formal or literary, but it remains fully standard in British and American English alike, and useful whenever a writer wants to name a single crossing rather than evoke a moment of choice.
nounA road that crosses another road, or (more commonly in the plural) a place where two or more roads meet; a crossroads.
- A road that crosses another road.
- (Usually in the plural form 'crossroads') A place where two roads intersect or meet.
"They stopped for directions at the first crossroad they came to after leaving the village."
"The old farmhouse stood alone beside the quiet crossroad."
"Every crossroad along the highway had been marked with warning signs."
Note that 'crossroads' functions grammatically as a singular noun despite ending in -s: one says 'a crossroads' or 'the crossroads is busy'. This idiom makes the singular 'crossroad' rare in everyday speech.
"There is a busy crossroads at the edge of town."
In everyday English, 'crossroads' is so dominant that many people never realize 'crossroad' — the true singular — exists at all.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of crossroad
Crossroad combines 'cross', from Old Norse 'kross' via Old English, with 'road', from Old English 'rād', meaning a riding or journey, which later came to denote the way itself. The compound emerged in English in the early modern period as turnpike and country-road networks spread, making named crossings a familiar feature of travel. It shares its roots with the broader family of road-words such as 'byroad' and 'crossway'.
Related word forms
How crossroad is actually used
The singular form 'crossroad' is far less common than the plural 'crossroads', which English speakers habitually use even for a single junction. 'Crossroads' also carries a strong figurative sense — being at a point of important decision — that the bare singular rarely takes on. In American usage especially, 'intersection' often replaces both forms in technical contexts.
Easily confused with crossroad
'Crossroads' is almost always used in the plural form even when referring to a single junction of roads, whereas 'crossroad' is singular and refers to one crossing road.