cross wires

Etymology

Definitions

1. 1

   To cause difficulty

   To cause difficulty; to interact in a way that generates conflict.

   • After Diodorus, Josephus († ca. A.D. 95) is our chief source of information about the Nabataeans, but Josephus was interested in them only as they crossed wires with the Hebrews.
   • While AFSA demands justice, we cannot tolerate or sit quietly back and watch colleagues being targeted, secretly investigated, discredited and financially abused because they crossed wires with IG staff.
   • For many poets such a compulsion might remain unfocused, a theme that inadvertently crosses wires and brings forth occasional sparks.
2. 2

   To interact in a way that causes confusion or interference.

   • Your sentiment crosses wires with your common sense, and you pay the penalty when the power goes off and your lights go out
   • Ott often crosses wires, confusing events that occur at quite distinct levels, taking such crossings and confusions as telling evidence:
3. 3

   Synonym of reticle.

   • The instrumental adjustment of these parts is confined to the fixing of the intersection of the cross wires in the axis of the equal cylindrical rings bearing on the Ys, or, in other words, in the line of collimation.
   • For example, in using the telescope to determine the position of a star or some distant mark, it would be adjusted until the image of the star, formed by the object, coincided with the intersection of the cross wires.

The neighborhood