I. through 1 S1 W1 /θruː/ BrE AmE preposition , adverb
1 . DOOR/PASSAGE ETC into one side or end of an entrance, passage, hole etc and out of the other side or end:
She smiled at him as he walked through the door.
Water will be pumped through a pipe.
I managed to squeeze through a gap in the hedge.
They were suddenly plunged into darkness as the train went through a tunnel.
There were people standing in the doorway and I couldn’t get through.
through to
I went through to the kitchen to see who was there.
2 . CUTTING/BREAKING cutting or breaking something, or making a hole from one side of it to the other:
A football came crashing through the window.
straight/right/clean through
The bullet passed straight through his skull.
3 . ACROSS AN AREA from one side of an area to the other or between a group of things:
We passed through France on our way to Italy.
We made our way through the village to the farm.
The wind howled through the trees.
He had to push his way through the crowd to get to her.
Let me through – I’m a doctor.
get through/make it through (=reach a place after a difficult journey)
You’ll never get through – the snow’s two metres deep.
Rescue teams have finally made it through to the survivors.
We drove right through the town centre.
Carry on straight through the village.
4 . SEE THROUGH SOMETHING if you see something through glass, a window etc, you are on one side of the glass etc and it is on the other:
I could see her through the window.
I could see right through the thin curtains.
5 . PAST A PLACE past a place where you are supposed to stop:
It took us ages to get through passport control.
He drove straight through a red light.
6 . TIME during and to the end of a period of time:
The cold weather continued through the spring.
He slept right through the day.
The fighting went on all through the night.
7 . PROCESS/EXPERIENCE from the beginning to the end of a process or experience:
The book guides you through the whole procedure of buying a house.
When you have been through a terrible experience like that, it takes a long time to recover.
It’s a miracle that these buildings came through the war undamaged.
8 . COMPETITIONS past one stage in a competition to the next stage
through to
This is the first time they’ve ever made it through to the final.
They didn’t even get through the first round of the contest.
9 . BECAUSE OF SOMETHING because of something:
How many working days were lost through sickness last year?
10 . BY MEANS OF SOMETHING/SOMEBODY by means of a particular method, service, person etc:
She got her first job through an employment agency.
a success that was achieved through co-operative effort and wise leadership
I heard about it through a friend.
11 . PARLIAMENT/CONGRESS if a proposal passes through a parliament, it is agreed and accepted as a law:
A special bill was rushed through Congress to deal with the emergency.
12 . UNTIL May through June/Wednesday through Friday etc American English from May until June, from Wednesday until Friday etc:
The store is open Monday through Saturday.
13 . halfway through (something) in the middle of an event or period of time:
I left halfway through the film.
14 . TELEPHONE British English connected to someone by telephone:
I tried phoning you, but I couldn’t get through.
Please hold the line and I’ll put you through.
through to
Did you manage to get through to her?
15 . COMPLETELY wet through/cooked through etc informal completely wet, cooked etc:
You’re wet through. What on earth have you been doing?
It should only take a few minutes to heat this through.
16 . through and through if someone is a particular type of person through and through, they are completely that type of person:
I’ll say one thing for Sandra – she’s a professional through and through.
17 . ALL THE WAY through to London/Paris etc as far as London, Paris etc:
Does this train go through to Glasgow?
18 . USE QUICKLY get/go/run through something to use a lot of something quickly:
George Ward started smoking at the age of nine, and at one time he was getting through 80 a day.
By the end of the year he had run through all the money inherited from his father.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ because conjunction used when giving the reason for something:
I went home because I was tired.
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The streets were flooded because of all the rain.
▪ due to/owing to preposition used to give the reason why something has happened. Due to and owing to are more formal than because :
The delay was due to a problem with the ship’s engines.
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The parade had to be cancelled owing to bad weather.
▪ through preposition because of something. Through is used especially when saying why someone succeeded or failed to do something:
They won the game, more through luck than skill.
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You failed that test through carelessness.
▪ thanks to preposition used when explaining that something good has happened because of someone’s efforts, or because something exists:
Thanks to modern medicine, the disease can now be cured.
▪ since/as conjunction used when giving the reason why someone decides to do something or decides that something is true:
We decided to go to the beach since it was a nice day.
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I thought Kevin was out as his car wasn’t there.
▪ out of preposition because of a particular feeling or quality:
He started reading the book out of curiosity.
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I only asked out of politeness.
II. through 2 BrE AmE adjective
1 . be through (with somebody/something) informal
a) to have finished doing something or using something:
I’m not through just yet – I should be finished in an hour.
Are you through with the computer yet?
b) to no longer be having a relationship with someone:
That’s it! Simon and I are through.
I’m through with you!
2 . through train a train by which you can reach a place, without having to use other trains
3 . through road a road that joins cities, towns, or villages together