Etymologically
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transit

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 12:43. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈtɹæn.zɪt/, /ˈtɹæn.sɪt/; /ˈtɹɑːn.zɪt/ (UK)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin transitus (“a going over, passage”),[2][3][4] from trānsīre (“to cross over, go across”),[2][5] from trans (“across”) and īre (“to go”), from PIE Proto-Indo-European *ei- (“to go”).[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The action of passing across or through, and a passageway: about 1440 in the OED and Barnhart, the mid-15th century in Etymonline.[6][2][3]

Semantic evolution

In astrology, the passage of a planet across a special point is from 1621,[6] and in astronomy, the passage of a celestial body across the disc of a larger one, as in the transit of Venus, from 1669.[2] The verb, to pass over the disc of a heavenly body, is from the 1680s.[3] The carriage of persons or goods is from 1800,[6] and in transit is from the same period.[3] Public passenger transport, chiefly North American, is from 1873.[6] A surveying instrument called a transit is from the 19th century.[2]

Timeline

  • c. 1440 – passage; a passageway.[6]
  • 1621 – in astrology.[6]
  • 1669 – in astronomy.[2]
  • 1800 – carriage of goods.[6]
  • 1873 – public transport.[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The carrying of people or goods from one place to another.
  2. (chiefly North American) A system of public transport.
  3. The act of passing over, across or through; passage.
  4. (astronomy) The passage of a planet or moon across the disc of a larger body.
  5. A surveying instrument for measuring angles.

Verb

  1. To pass across or through.

Word family

  • paratransit
  • transit lounge
  • rapid transit
  • transit instrument
  • transience
  • transiency
  • transient
  • transition
  • transitive
  • transitory
  • trance
  • exit
  • itinerary

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press