extend

[ ik-stend ]

/ ɪkˈstɛnd /

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verb (used with object)

to stretch out; draw out to the full length: He extended the measuring tape as far as it would go.

to stretch, draw, or arrange in a given direction, or so as to reach a particular point, as a cord, wall, or line of troops.

to stretch forth or hold out, as the arm or hand: to extend one's hand in greeting.

to place at full length, especially horizontally, as the body or limbs.

to increase the length or duration of; lengthen; prolong: to extend a visit.

to stretch out in various or all directions; expand; spread out in area: A huge tent was extended over the field.

to enlarge the scope of, or make more comprehensive, as operations, influence, or meaning: The European powers extended their authority in Asia.

to provide as an offer or grant; offer; grant; give: to extend aid to needy scholars.

Finance. to postpone (the payment of a debt) beyond the time originally agreed upon.

to increase the bulk or volume of, especially by adding an inexpensive or plentiful substance.

Bookkeeping. to transfer (figures) from one column to another.

Law.

British. to assess or value.
to make a seizure or levy upon, as land, by a writ of extent.

Manège. to bring (a horse) into an extended attitude.

to exert (oneself) to an unusual degree.

Archaic. to exaggerate.

Obsolete. to take by seizure.

verb (used without object)

to be or become extended; stretch out in length, duration, or in various or all directions.

to reach, as to a particular point.

to increase in length, area, scope, etc.

Manège. (of a horse) to come into an extended attitude.

Nearby words

extemporaneous, extemporaneously, extemporary, extempore, extemporize, extend, extend credit to, extendable, extended, extended care, extended complex plane

Origin of extend

1250–1300; Middle English extenden < Latin extendere to stretch out. See ex-¹, tend¹

SYNONYMS FOR extend

5 continue. See lengthen.

6 enlarge; widen, dilate.

8 bestow, impart.

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ANTONYMS FOR extend

1 shorten, contract.

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Related forms

ex·tend·i·ble, ex·tend·a·ble, adjectiveex·tend·i·bil·i·ty, ex·tend·a·bil·i·ty, nounnon·ex·tend·i·ble, adjectivenon·ex·tend·i·ble·ness, noun

pre·ex·tend, verbsu·per·ex·tend, verbun·ex·tend·a·ble, adjectiveun·ex·tend·i·ble, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for extending

The extending out of one syllable is a great songwriting device.
Yes, I Like Christmas Music. Stop Laughing.|Michael Tomasky|December 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Did you envision your Pryor biography as extending your previous investigation—aesthetically and historically?
How Richard Pryor Beat Bill Cosby and Transformed America|David Yaffe, Scott Saul|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“I just got my nails done,” gushes Michael C. Hall, extending his manicured, silver digits towards me.
Michael C. Hall on Going Drag for ‘Hedwig and the Angry Inch’ and Exorcising ‘Dexter’|Marlow Stern|December 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Extending the life of a fighter jet past its expected lifespan comes at a steep price.
Navy Grounds Top Guns|Dave Majumdar|October 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST

“If anything, John Kerry succeeded in extending the period of hope for a little bit longer,” he said.
Everyone Says John Kerry Should Stay Out of the Middle East|Josh Rogin|July 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The crevices where racers hibernate are known to be several feet deep in some instances, extending well below the frost line.
Natural History of the Racer Coluber constrictor|Henry S. Fitch
The sight is perfectly dazzling; the plain, as far as the eye can reach, extending in the same bespangled carpet of red and green.
Parsons on the Rose|Samuel Browne Parsons
Our route was long and wearisome, extending throughout the following night.
The Adventures of Captain John Patterson with Notices of The Officers &c. of the 50th or Queen's Own Regiment from 1807 to 1821|John Patterson
For the first time in the history of mankind the experiment was made of extending the institutions of Japhet to the sons of Ham.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 71, No. 436, February 1852|Various
Much of the territory is mountainous, the Carpathians extending over about 800 miles.
Alden's Handy Atlas of the World|John B. Alden

British Dictionary definitions for extending

extend

/ (ɪkˈstɛnd) /

verb

to draw out or be drawn out; stretch

to last for a certain timehis schooling extended for three years

(intr) to reach a certain point in time or distancethe land extends five miles

(intr) to exist or occurthe trees extended throughout the area

(tr) to increase (a building, etc) in size or area; add to or enlarge

(tr) to broaden the meaning or scope ofthe law was extended

(tr) to put forth, present, or offerto extend greetings

to stretch forth (an arm, etc)

(tr) to lay out (a body) at full length

(tr) to strain or exert (a person or animal) to the maximum

(tr) to prolong (the time originally set) for payment of (a debt or loan), completion of (a task), etc

(tr) accounting

to carry forward
to calculate the amount of (a total, balance, etc)

(tr) law (formerly in England) to value or assess (land)

Derived Forms

extendible or extendable, adjectiveextendibility or extendability, noun

Word Origin for extend

C14: from Latin extendere to stretch out, from tendere to stretch

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

extend

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

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RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of extend

SYNONYMS FOR extend

ANTONYMS FOR extend

Related forms

Examples from the Web for extending

British Dictionary definitions for extending

extend

verb

Derived Forms

Word Origin for extend

Medicine definitions for extending

extend

v.