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Glite Dictionary
🛤️ A shortcut route ✂️ To cut across 🎬 To switch scenes
to crosscut

to crosscut

6.8
To edit by cutting between two scenes to show events at the same time
  • verb
  • /ˈkrɔsˌkʌt/
  • Specialized
translation icon : alternar
  • The documentary crosscuts between interviews with witnesses and historical footage to provide a richer context of the event.

Examples

  • In the film, the director skillfully crosscuts between the hero's frantic escape and the villain's chilling plans, heightening the tension.

  • Nixon staffers are gathered around Haig's TV set as we crosscut to the committee chamber - (seen only on TV) - day (1973) John Dean reads his statement to the committee.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • This is an episode that crosscuts between Sister Jude putting on her finest fashions to seduce a man in a bar and Dr. Arden giving "Anne Frank" a lobotomy that will return her to the faithful wife her husband wants.

    Blog text (3)

  • During the editing process, she crosscut the two timelines to show how the characters' lives were intertwined.

Synonyms

to intercut
vsto crosscut
  • Jargon
8 7.7

To insert scenes like interviews or real footage between shots to show different times

focuses on alternating scenes to show simultaneous events or to create contrast

Compounds

crosscut saw
  • Specialized
1 5.1

A hand saw for cutting wood across the grain

crosscut handsaw
  • Specialized
6.1

A hand tool for cutting wood across the grain

How Alternating

to montage
  • Specialized
1 5.8
to crosscut
  • Specialized
6.8
to intercut
  • Jargon
8 7.7
to cut back
  • Jargon
5 5.5
to cut to
  • Jargon
88 5.1

Surface Forms

crosscut infinitive
crosscut past
crosscut past participle
crosscutting present participle
crosscuts third person singular

Morphology

crosscut = cross + cut (semi-transparent) = cross + cut

The film-editing sense is derived from the literal idea of 'cutting across' storylines, but it is a specialist/metaphorical usage that may not be obvious to all learners.

Etymology

The film meaning of crosscut also joins cross 'across' and cut 'to cut'; in editing a 'cut' moves between scenes, so to crosscut is to 'cut across' two or more scenes to show events happening at the same time or to create contrast.