What Is an Example of a Crossover?

An example of a crossover is the Toyota RAV4, a car-based SUV that blends passenger-car underpinnings with sport-utility styling and ride height. More broadly, “crossover” describes a blend or intersection between categories—appearing in autos, entertainment, science, finance, medicine, and sports—whenever elements from distinct domains combine or cross paths.

Automotive: The Car-Based SUV

In the auto industry, a crossover typically refers to a vehicle built on a unibody, car-like platform that mixes sedan comfort with SUV practicality. The following examples illustrate mainstream models that epitomize the category.

• Toyota RAV4 — a leading compact crossover known for efficiency and versatility.
• Honda CR-V — blends roomy interiors with car-like handling.
• Nissan Rogue — emphasizes family-friendly features and comfort.
• Subaru Crosstrek — pairs all-wheel drive with compact, car-based packaging.
• Hyundai Tucson — offers advanced driver assists in a compact crossover format.

These models showcase how crossovers merge traits—higher seating position and flexible cargo space with the ride quality and efficiency of a car-based platform.

Entertainment and Media: Crossing Worlds and Audiences

In entertainment, a crossover occurs when characters, franchises, genres, or audiences intersect—often to create fresh storylines or reach wider demographics. The examples below span television, film, gaming, and music.

• TV: The Simpsons and Family Guy “The Simpsons Guy” (2014) — a crossover episode uniting two animated universes.
• Film: Spider-Man’s appearance in Marvel’s Captain America: Civil War (2016) — a studio-bridging character crossover.
• Gaming: Super Smash Bros. Ultimate — a multi-franchise crossover roster from Nintendo and partner IPs.
• Gaming/Pop Culture: Fortnite collaborations with brands such as Marvel and Star Wars — live, in-game crossover events.
• Music: Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” — a genre-blending hit that crossed country, hip-hop, and pop audiences.

These crossovers expand reach and spark cultural moments by blending fan bases, storytelling worlds, and even music charts.

Science and Technology: Mixing Signals and Genes

Scientists and engineers use “crossover” for processes where elements split or exchange across boundaries—most notably in genetics and audio systems. The examples highlight how the term functions in technical contexts.

• Genetics: Crossing over during meiosis — homologous chromosomes exchange DNA segments, increasing genetic diversity.
• Audio Engineering: A loudspeaker crossover network — divides frequencies (e.g., to a tweeter and woofer) for cleaner sound.
• Networking (legacy): Ethernet crossover cable — directly connects two similar devices by swapping transmit/receive pairs.

Whether exchanging genetic material or splitting sound frequencies, these crossovers control how information moves and mixes to achieve desired outcomes.

Finance and Investing: Signals at the Intersection

In markets, crossover describes technical indicators that “cross,” often used to infer momentum shifts. The items below are widely referenced by traders and analysts.

• Golden Cross — a shorter-term moving average (often 50-day) crosses above a longer-term average (often 200-day), seen as bullish.
• Death Cross — the shorter-term moving average crosses below the longer-term average, viewed as bearish.
• MACD Signal-Line Crossover — the MACD line crossing its signal line, indicating potential trend changes.

These crossovers don’t guarantee outcomes, but they offer simple visual cues that many participants watch for shifts in trend or momentum.

Medicine and Research: The Crossover Trial

In clinical research, a crossover study design lets participants receive multiple treatments in sequence, improving statistical power and reducing variability. Here are common examples of how it’s applied.

• Two-period, two-sequence trial — Group AB gets Drug A then Drug B; Group BA starts with Drug B then switches to Drug A, with a washout in between.
• Bioequivalence testing — participants receive a brand-name drug and its generic in alternating periods.

By allowing each participant to serve as their own control, crossover studies can reveal treatment effects with fewer subjects than parallel-group designs.

Sports: A Move That Crosses Defenders

Sports use “crossover” for maneuvers that shift direction rapidly to outplay opponents. Basketball offers one of the clearest examples.

• Basketball crossover dribble — a quick, side-to-side ball-handling move popularized by players like Allen Iverson to shake defenders.

These athletic crossovers hinge on deception and timing, leveraging rapid changes in direction to create space.

Summary

A crossover, at its core, is about blending or intersecting categories: a Toyota RAV4 mixes car and SUV traits; TV and film crossovers merge story worlds; genetics swaps DNA segments; markets track moving-average crosses; trials trade treatments between the same participants; and athletes use crossovers to change direction. Across fields, the unifying idea is a purposeful crossing that creates something new—whether that’s a vehicle type, a narrative event, a scientific mechanism, a trading signal, a study design, or a signature move.

What are the three types of crossovers?

An N-way loudspeaker usually has an N-way crossover to divide the signal among the drivers. A 2-way crossover consists of a low-pass and a high-pass filter. A 3-way crossover is constructed as a combination of low-pass, band-pass and high-pass filters (LPF, BPF and HPF respectively).

What is an example of a crossover study?

A crossover study example is one where patients with hot flushes are randomly split into two groups; one group gets valerian root for four weeks, then black cohosh, while the other group receives black cohosh first, followed by valerian root. A six-week washout period in between allows for any residual drug effects to wear off before the groups switch treatments. This design allows each patient to act as their own control, reducing variability and making the comparison of treatments more sensitive.
 
Here’s a breakdown of the example:

1. Study Goal: To compare the effectiveness of two herbal supplements, valerian root (treatment A) and black cohosh (treatment B), for managing hot flushes. 
2. Participants: 140 women with hot flushes are recruited and randomly assigned to one of two groups. 
3. Group 1: Receives valerian root (treatment A) for the first four weeks. 
4. Group 2: Receives black cohosh (treatment B) for the first four weeks. 
5. Washout Period: A six-week period where neither supplement is taken by anyone, allowing the effects of the first treatment to completely dissipate. 
6. Treatment Switch: After the washout period, the treatments are switched. 
   • Group 1 now receives black cohosh (treatment B) for four weeks. 
   • Group 2 now receives valerian root (treatment A) for four weeks. 
7. Outcome Measurement: The reduction in hot flushes is measured for both groups, first after the initial treatment period and again after the second treatment period. 

Why this is a good example of a crossover design:

• Paired Comparison: By comparing a patient’s response to treatment A with their own response to treatment B, the study minimizes differences between individual patients. 
• Reduced Variability: This patient-as-own-control approach reduces the variability in the data caused by differences between people. 
• Efficiency: Crossover studies are often more efficient, requiring fewer participants than a standard parallel group study to achieve the same statistical power. 

What is crossover in simple words?

: a change from one style or type of activity to another.

What is an example of a crossover in basketball?

Now I’m going to be able to then cross the ball. Over at the same time. As I’m stepping with my left. So I’m going to keep that rhythm all the way up the floor. So get it nice and low.