spans
noun · verb
Form of span , plural of span.
Simple meaning
Any of different traditional units of length approximating this distance.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
spanzIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈspænz
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
plural of span
Any of various traditional units of length approximating this distance, especially the English handspan of 9 inches forming ⅛ fathom and equivalent to 22.86 cm.
plural of span
A small space or a brief portion of time.
plural of span
A portion of something by length; a subsequence.
plural of span
A pair of horses or other animals driven together; usually, such a pair of horses when similar in color, form, and action.
verb
third-person singular of span
To measure by the span of the hand with the fingers extended, or with the fingers encompassing the object.
third-person singular of span
To extend through the distance between or across.
third-person singular of span
To extend through (a time period).
third-person singular of span
To cover or extend over an area or time period
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Any of various traditional units of length approximating this distance, especially the English handspan of 9 inches forming ⅛ fathom and equivalent to 22.86 cm.
Used this way, spans is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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