distend
[ dih-stend ]
/ dɪˈstɛnd /
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verb (used with or without object)
to expand by stretching, as something hollow or elastic: Habitual overeating had distended his stomach.
to spread in all directions; expand; swell: The sea distended about them.
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Origin of distend
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English distenden (from Anglo-French destendre ), from Latin distendere, equivalent to dis- dis-1 + tendere “to stretch”
synonym study for distend
1. See expand.
OTHER WORDS FROM distend
dis·tend·er, nouno·ver·dis·tend, verbun·dis·tend, verb (used with object)Words nearby distend
Di Stéfano, distelfink, distemper, distemperature, distemperoid, distend, distended, distensible, distensile, distent, distention
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for distend
British Dictionary definitions for distend
distend
/ (dɪˈstɛnd) /
verb
to expand or be expanded by or as if by pressure from within; swell; inflate
(tr) to stretch out or extend
(tr) to magnify in importance; exaggerate
Derived forms of distend
distender, noundistensible, adjectivedistensibility, noundistension or distention, nounWord Origin for distend
C14: from Latin distendere, from dis- 1 + tendere to stretch
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Medical definitions for distend
distend
[ dĭ-stĕnd′ ]
v.
To swell out or expand or cause to swell out or expand from or as if from internal pressure.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.