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across, over and through

On/to the other side of (a line): across and over​

Across and over can both be used to mean ‘on or to the other side of a line, river, road, bridge, etc’.

  • His village is just across/over the border.
  • See if you can jump across/over the stream.

High things: over preferred​

We prefer over to say ‘on/to the other side of something high’.

  • Why are you climbing over the wall? (not … across the wall?)

Flat areas: across preferred​

We usually prefer across to say ‘on/to the other side of a flat area or surface’.

  • He walked right across the desert.
  • It took them six hours to row across the lake.

The adverb over (to)​

Note that the adverb over has a wider meaning than the preposition over. We often use over (to) for short journeys.

  • I’m going over to Jack’s.
  • Shall we drive over and see your mother?

across and through​

The difference between across and through is like the difference between on and in. Through, unlike across, is used for a movement in a three-dimensional space, with things on all sides. Compare:

  • We walked across the ice. (We were on the ice.)
    I walked through the wood. (I was in the wood.)
  • We drove across the desert.
    We drove through several towns.
note

For over and above, (see here).

For across from (AmE), (see here).

For other uses of these words, see a good dictionary.