Crossword Genius

Go over passages - are they representative? (5-8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

cross-sections

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'representative?' is the definition.
(I know this)

'go over passages are' is the wordplay.
'go over' becomes 'cross' (to cross over).
'passages are' becomes 'sections' (I can't justify this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'cross'+'sections'='CROSS-SECTIONS'

'they' acts as a link.
This may not be correct. It may be part of another bit of the clue.

Can you help me to learn more?

I've seen this clue in The Irish Times.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.