crosscutting: meaning, definition, pronunciation and examples
C1Formal, Academic, Business, Technical
Quick answer
What does “crosscutting” mean?
An action or issue that intersects, affects, or is relevant across multiple different areas, groups, or categories.
Audio
Pronunciation
Definition
Meaning and Definition
An action or issue that intersects, affects, or is relevant across multiple different areas, groups, or categories.
In systems thinking and analysis, a theme, problem, or methodology that connects distinct domains, requiring integrated approaches and solutions that cannot be confined to a single silo.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant difference in meaning. Spelling conventions follow standard patterns: 'crosscutting' (no hyphen) is dominant in both varieties, though older texts may use 'cross-cutting'.
Connotations
Slightly more common in EU/UK policy and development discourse. In US contexts, it is heavily associated with environmental science, public policy, and interdisciplinary research.
Frequency
Low-frequency in general language but a high-frequency term in specific professional and academic registers in both varieties.
Grammar
How to Use “crosscutting” in a Sentence
ADJ + N (crosscutting theme)V + N (address crosscutting issues)N + PREP (crosscutting of boundaries)Vocabulary
Collocations
Examples
Examples of “crosscutting” in a Sentence
verb
British English
- The film director excelled at crosscutting between the pursuer and the pursued to build tension.
- The report recommends crosscutting departmental budgets to fund the new initiative.
American English
- The editor is crosscutting between the two debate stages live.
- The new policy aims at crosscutting traditional agency boundaries.
Usage
Meaning in Context
Business
Used in strategy to describe initiatives affecting multiple departments (e.g., 'digital transformation is a crosscutting priority for HR, IT, and Marketing').
Academic
Central to research methodology describing themes that span disciplines (e.g., 'sustainability is a crosscutting concept in the social sciences').
Everyday
Rare. Could be used descriptively (e.g., 'their friendship was a crosscutting link between the two rival groups').
Technical
Common in geology (a rock cut diagonally across the strata), film editing (a crosscutting sequence), and forestry (cutting timber across the grain).
Vocabulary
Synonyms of “crosscutting”
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Watch out
Common Mistakes When Using “crosscutting”
- Using as a simple synonym for 'important' (It's a crosscutting problem =/=> It's an important problem).
- Confusing with 'cross-cutting' as a verb in film ('crosscutting between scenes') and using it incorrectly in policy contexts.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Modern usage increasingly favours the closed compound 'crosscutting', especially as an adjective. The hyphenated form 'cross-cutting' is also acceptable but less common in contemporary texts.
'Overlapping' suggests two or more things share a common area. 'Crosscutting' is more active and systemic; it describes something that penetrates through multiple separate systems or categories, creating connections and requiring integrated action.
Yes, as a gerund (e.g., 'The crosscutting of disciplines leads to innovation') or to name the concept itself (e.g., 'Crosscutting is a key principle of our methodology').
It is a specialised term. For general conversation, simpler words like 'affecting many areas', 'common to all', or 'linking' are more appropriate and understandable.
An action or issue that intersects, affects, or is relevant across multiple different areas, groups, or categories.
Crosscutting is usually formal, academic, business, technical in register.
Crosscutting: in British English it is pronounced /ˈkrɒsˌkʌtɪŋ/, and in American English it is pronounced /ˈkrɔːsˌkʌtɪŋ/. Tap the audio buttons above to hear it.
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “A thread running through”
- “A common denominator”
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Imagine scissors cutting ACROSS a layered cake, affecting all the different layers at once. 'Cross' + 'cutting' = cutting across boundaries.
Conceptual Metaphor
A NETWORK or WEB connecting separate points. A FABRIC with threads running through it. A RIVER cutting across a landscape, connecting different regions.
Practice
Quiz
In which context is 'crosscutting' LEAST likely to be used correctly?