A current of water, air, or opinion that moves at an angle to the main current or direction; a conflicting tendency or influence.
From 'cross' (Old French 'crois', meaning opposite) + 'current' (from Old French 'corant', flowing, from Latin 'currens'). First used literally for water currents, then metaphorically for opposing ideas.
Ocean crosscurrents create some of the most dangerous shipping zones in the world—when the Gulf Stream crosses the cold Labrador Current near Newfoundland, it creates the ideal conditions for massive icebergs and thick fog that have sunk countless ships!
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