cross-check
Meaning
To verify information by using a different source or method.
The act or process of verifying information in this way.
Structure
Usage
The journalist made sure to cross-check the facts with official documents before publishing the story.
As a standard procedure, the lab results undergo a rigorous cross-check by a separate team.
For safety, always cross-check your calculations using a different formula.
Etymology
The word 'cross-check' is a modern English compound formed from two distinct roots. 'Cross' originates from Latin 'crux', which referred to a stake or instrument of torture, but its adverbial sense of "across" or "transversely" developed in English. 'Check' has a more circuitous journey, entering English from the world of chess, where it signified a threat to the king, and later broadening to mean any act of verification or examination. The compound logic is transparent: to 'check' something by going 'across' to a different, independent source or method, thereby creating a metaphorical intersection of verification paths for greater reliability. This term reflects a systematic approach to accuracy, common in fields like journalism, science, and finance.
Analysis
- cross: From Old English 'cros', ultimately from Latin 'crux, crucis' (cross, torture stake). In this compound, it functions as an adverb/adjective meaning "across" or "transverse," indicating a secondary or intersecting verification path. - check: From Old French 'eschec', via Arabic and Persian from Persian 'shāh' (king), related to the chess term "check." It evolved to mean "to examine or verify," likely from the idea of verifying a move in chess or a financial record. In this compound, it is the core verb/noun meaning "to examine."