Overpass

Part of speech: noun, verb

Pronunciation: /ˈəʊvə(ɹ)pæs/

Definitions

1. A structure built to allow vehicles or pedestrians to cross above another road or obstacle while also indicating the act of exceeding a limit or surpassing a boundary
2. An elevated pathway designed to permit passage above another thoroughfare or obstacle, also representing the action of going beyond established thresholds
3. A raised structure that lets people or vehicles travel over another road ; to move across something by going over it

Etymology: "Overpass" is a plain compound: the prefix "over-" joined to "pass," so the name says exactly what the structure does, carrying traffic over another route. The "over-" half traces back through Old English "ofer" to a Proto-Germanic root shared with words for "above" and "beyond," while the "pass" half comes from Latin "passus," meaning a step or stride, which passed through Vulgar Latin "passare" and Old French "passer" before arriving in Middle English as "passen." Because the second element is a verb meaning to move past or go across, the compound naturally extends to the figurative sense in the definition: going beyond an established threshold. The structure is a modern coinage built from older parts, so its literal sense of a road or path crossing above another is the original and still the core meaning.

Synonyms: bridge, viaduct