stretch
pronunciation
How to pronounce stretch in British English:
UK [stretʃ]
How to pronounce stretch in American English:
US [stretʃ]
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- Noun:
- a large and unbroken expanse or distance
- the act of physically reaching or thrusting out
- a straightaway section of a racetrack
- exercise designed to extend the limbs and muscles to their full extent
- extension to or beyond the ordinary limit
- an unbroken period of time during which you do something
- the capacity for being stretched
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- Verb:
- occupy a large, elongated area
- extend one's limbs or muscles, or the entire body
- extend or stretch out to a greater or the full length
- become longer by being stretched and pulled
- make long or longer by pulling and stretching
- lie down comfortably
- pull in opposite directions
- extend the scope or meaning of; often unduly
- corrupt, debase, or make impure by adding a foreign or inferior substance; often by replacing valuable ingredients with inferior ones
- increase in quantity or bulk by adding a cheaper substance
- extend one's body or limbs
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- Adjective:
- having an elongated seating area
- easily stretched
Word Origin
- stretch
- stretch: [OE] Stretch comes from a prehistoric West Germanic *strakkjan (source also of German strecken and Dutch strekken). This was formed from a base *strak-, which probably also produced English straggle [14]. It is not certain where *strak- came from, but probably it was an alteration of *strak- ‘rigid’ (source of English starch and stark).Reversal of speech sounds (here a and r) is quite common; the process is known as metathesis. The notions of ‘rigidity’ and ‘stretching’ do not appear very compatible at first sight, but it is thought that the original application of stretch was to ‘stretching the limbs’, in the sense of making them straight or ‘stiff’. Straight comes from a former past participle of stretch.=> straggle, straight
- stretch (v.)
- Old English streccan (transitive and intransitive) "to stretch, spread out, prostrate; reach, extend" (past tense strehte, past participle streht), from Proto-Germanic *strakjanan (cognates: Danish strække, Swedish sträcka, Old Frisian strekka, Old High German strecchan, Middle Low German, Middle Dutch, Old High German, German strecken "to stretch, draw out"), perhaps a variant of the root of stark, or else from PIE root *strenk- "tight, narrow; pull tight, twist" (see string (n.)). Meaning "to extend (the limbs or wings)" is from c. 1200; that of "to lay out for burial" is from early 13c. To stretch one's legs "take a walk" is from c. 1600. Meaning "to lengthen by force" first recorded late 14c.; figurative sense of "to enlarge beyond proper limits, exaggerate," is from 1550s. Stretch limo first attested 1973. Stretch marks is attested from 1960. Related: Stretched; stretching.
- stretch (n.)
- late 12c., "expanse of land;" 1540s, "act of stretching," from stretch (v.); meaning "unbroken continuance of some activity" is first recorded 1660s; meaning "straightaway of a race course" (as in home stretch) is recorded from 1839.
Antonym
Example
- 1. Would stretch deep into the future .
- 2. One stretch of the nebula , about 10 light-years wide , glows with x-rays .
- 3. Stretch before bed to help prevent leg cramps .
- 4. Activities that stretch your muscles help to counteract this tension .
- 5. A million panels stretch as far as the eye can see .