What does uncrossed mean?
Uncrossed is an adjective and participial form meaning “not crossed” or “not intersected.” It can describe lines or paths that do not cross, arms or legs that are not folded across one another, and a cheque or check that does not bear the parallel lines traditionally used to indicate payment through a bank. In another construction, an object is uncrossed when it has been returned to an uncrossed or open position. The word is formal but not obscure, and it is especially common in maps, diagrams, banking, and descriptions of physical posture. Although it can sound unusual in everyday speech, its meaning is literal: whatever has been crossed has not been crossed, or a previous crossing has been undone. This makes it useful when precision matters and when a simpler term such as open might fail to distinguish the relevant sense.
Not crossed or intersected; not bearing crossing lines or marks.
"The technician adjusted the controls so the two beams remained uncrossed."
The banking sense is standard in both British and American English, with cheque and check reflecting the relevant spelling convention.
Past tense and past participle of uncross: to undo the crossing of.
"She uncrossed her ankles and stood up."
This is the inflected form of the verb uncross rather than a distinct lexical verb.
A cheque gets its name from the cross: the old security convention of drawing parallel lines across it makes an “uncrossed” cheque a pleasingly literal rarity.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does uncrossed come from?
Uncrossed was formed in English by combining the negative prefix un- with cross. The form expresses both the absence of a crossing and, in verbal use, the reversal or undoing of one. English cross ultimately derives through Old English from Latin crux, meaning a cross or cross-shaped structure, with reinforcement from Old Norse kross.
Related word forms
How uncrossed is actually used
Most often encountered in formal or specialist descriptions of documents, diagrams, or posture. It is standard in British and American English, with cheque and check reflecting the relevant spelling convention.