extensive
Americanadjective
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an extensive area.
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covering or extending over a great area.
extensive travels.
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far-reaching; comprehensive; thorough.
extensive knowledge.
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an extensive journey.
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great in amount, number, or degree.
an extensive fortune; extensive political influence.
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of or having extension.
Space is extensive, time durational.
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noting or pertaining to a system of agriculture involving the use or cultivation of large areas of land with a minimum of labor and expense (opposed to intensive).
adjective
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having a large extent, area, scope, degree, etc; vast
extensive deserts
an extensive inheritance
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widespread
extensive coverage in the press
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agriculture involving or farmed with minimum expenditure of capital or labour, esp depending on a large area of land Compare intensive
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physics of or relating to a property, measurement, etc, of a macroscopic system that is proportional to the size of the system Compare intensive
heat is an extensive property
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logic
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of or relating to logical extension
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(of a definition) in terms of the objects to which the term applies rather than its meaning
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of extensive
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Late Latin extēnsīvus, equivalent to Latin extēns(us) (past participle of extendere “to stretch out”) + -īvus adjective suffix; see extend, -ive
Explanation
When something is far-reaching or expansive it is extensive. When your friend knows every single place and time that his favorite band has played any given song, he has extensive knowledge of that band. Use the adjective extensive for something that goes on and on and on. It works for anything that covers a lot of territory either in physical space, as in "the gardens at the palace are extensive," or conceptually, as in "her knowledge of the mortgage-backed securities market is extensive." If you are a farmer, you would also use extensive to mean that you are able to work a lot of land without too much effort or manual labor.
Vocabulary lists containing extensive
Hatchet
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List 8
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A Christmas Carol
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Extensive blackouts and a collapsing economy spark unrest in Havana.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026
Extensive spread of the hantavirus outbreak is not expected, health experts say.
From Los Angeles Times • May 14, 2026
Extensive health studies were conducted on the Apollo astronauts, but technology has advanced greatly in the 50 years since, said Bruce Betts, chief scientist at the Planetary Society, a space advocacy group.
From Barron's • Apr. 10, 2026
Extensive preclinical work in the motor and visual cortices was carried out with Dr. Tolias and Bijan Pesaran, professor of neurosurgery at the University of Pennsylvania, both recognized leaders in computational and systems neuroscience.
From Science Daily • Dec. 9, 2025
Extensive, formerly forested areas of the highlands were converted by traditional New Guinea farmers to fenced, drained, intensively managed field systems supporting dense human populations.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
