span

[span]

Any distance between two things is called a span. These end points can be physical, like the span of a rope between two trees, or they can be more abstract, such as the span of time between five and six o'clock.

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imp. & p. p. of Spin.

Noun
the act of sitting or standing astride

Noun
a structure that allows people or vehicles to cross an obstacle such as a river or canal or railway etc.

Noun
the distance or interval between two points

Noun
a unit of length based on the width of the expanded human hand (usually taken as 9 inches)

Noun
two items of the same kind

...

Noun
the complete duration of something; "the job was finished in the span of an hour"

Verb
to cover or extend over an area or time period; "Rivers traverse the valley floor", "The parking lot spans 3 acres"; "The novel spans three centuries"



imp. & p. p. of Spin.

v. t.
The space from the thumb to the end of the little finger when extended; nine inches; eighth of a fathom.

v. t.
Hence, a small space or a brief portion of time.

v. t.
The spread or extent of an arch between its abutments, or of a beam, girder, truss, roof, bridge, or the like, between its supports.

v. t.
A rope having its ends made fast so that a purchase can be hooked to the bight; also, a rope made fast in the center so that both ends can be used.

v. t.
A pair of horses or other animals driven together; usually, such a pair of horses when similar in color, form, and action.

v. t.
To measure by the span of the hand with the fingers extended, or with the fingers encompassing the object; as, to span a space or distance; to span a cylinder.

v. t.
To reach from one side of to the order; to stretch over as an arch.

v. t.
To fetter, as a horse; to hobble.

v. i.
To be matched, as horses.

imp.
of Spin


Span

Span , archaic imp. & p. p. of Spin.

Span

Span, n. [AS. spann; akin to D. span, OHG. spanna, G. spanne, Icel. sp'94nn. &root;170. See Span, v. t. ] 1. The space from the thumb to the end of the little finger when extended; nine inches; eighth of a fathom. 2. Hence, a small space or a brief portion of time.
Yet not to earth's contracted span Thy goodness let me bound.
Life's but a span; I'll every inch enjoy.
3. The spread or extent of an arch between its abutments, or of a beam, girder, truss, roof, bridge, or the like, between its supports. 4. (Naut.) A rope having its ends made fast so that a purchase can be hooked to the bight; also, a rope made fast in the center so that both ends can be used. 5. [Cf. D. span, Sw. spann, Dan. sp'91nd, G. gespann. See Span, v. t. ] A pair of horses or other animals driven together; usually, such a pair of horses when similar in color, form, and action. Span blocks (Naut.), blocks at the topmast and topgallant-mast heads, for the studding-sail halyards. -- Span counter, an old English child's game, in which one throws a counter on the ground, and another tries to hit it with his counter, or to get his counter so near it that he can span the space between them, and touch both the counters. Halliwell. "Henry V., in whose time boys went to span counter for French crowns." Shak. -- Span iron (Naut.), a special kind of harpoon, usually secured just below the gunwale of a whaleboat. -- Span roof, a common roof, having two slopes and one ridge, with eaves on both sides. Gwilt. -- Span shackle (Naut.), a large bolt driven through the forecastle deck, with a triangular shackle in the head to receive the heel of the old-fashioned fish davit. Ham. Nav. Encyc.

Span

Span , v. t. [imp. & p. p. Spanned ; p. pr. & vb. n. Spanning.] [AS. pannan; akin to D. & G. spannen, OHG. spannan, Sw. sp'84nna, Dan. sp'91nde, Icel. spenna, and perh. to Gr. to draw, to drag, L. spatium space. &root;170. Cf. Spin, v. t., Space, Spasm.] 1. To measure by the span of the hand with the fingers extended, or with the fingers encompassing the object; as, to span a space or distance; to span a cylinder.
My right hand hath spanned the heavens.
2. To reach from one side of to the order; to stretch over as an arch.
The rivers were spanned by arches of solid masonry.
3. To fetter, as a horse; to hobble.

Span

Span, v. i. To be matched, as horses. [U. S.]

imp. & p. p. of Spin.

The space from the thumb to the end of the little finger when extended; nine inches; eighth of a fathom.

To measure by the span of the hand with the fingers extended, or with the fingers encompassing the object; as, to span a space or distance; to span a cylinder.

To be matched, as horses.

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Usage Examples

In one century, we've added 28 years to our average life span - a change so rapid that our brains couldn't possibly have evolved to accommodate it.

As a freelance writer, I'd be asked to become an expert for various magazines on any subject, whether food or wine or history or the life span of veterinarians. I was completely unschooled in any of these things.

Great minds are related to the brief span of time during which they live as great buildings are to a little square in which they stand: you cannot see them in all their magnitude because you are standing too close to them.

Misspelled Form

span, aspan, wspan, espan, dspan, xspan, zspan, apan, wpan, epan, dpan, xpan, zpan, sapan, swpan, sepan, sdpan, sxpan, szpan, sopan, s0pan, slpan, soan, s0an, slan, spoan, sp0an, splan, spqan, spwan, spsan, spzan, spqn, spwn, spsn, spzn, spaqn, spawn, spasn, spazn, spabn, spahn, spajn, spamn, spa n, spab, spah, spaj, spam, spa , spanb, spanh, spanj, spanm, span .

Other Usage Examples

Of course, nobody would deny the importance of human beings for theological thinking, but the time span of history that theologians think about is a few thousand years of human culture rather than the fifteen billion years of the history of the universe.

If the world's a veil of tears, Smile till rainbows span it.

I had two family members involved in World War I: two great-uncles. One of them is on a memorial in France. And the other was a trench runner who survived the war. The average life span of a trench runner was 36 hours, but he survived the whole war.

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