life span

noun

1. the longest period over which the life of any organism or species may extend, according to the available biological knowledge concerning it.

2. the longevity of an individual.

life span

noun

1. the period of time during which a human being, animal, machine, etc, may be expected to live or function under normal conditions

Word History and Origins

Origin of life span¹

First recorded in 1915–20

Example Sentences

Worst case: Insolvent Americans somehow paid off their subprime mortgage loans, and you were stuck paying an insurance premium of roughly 2 percent a year for as long as six years—the longest expected life span of the putatively thirty-year loans.

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Not even six months into its life span, Merit Street was already looking chaotic behind the scenes and earning a less-than-stellar reputation: The notoriously conservative Sinclair Broadcasting Group soon axed the Tennis Channel’s longtime chairman and CEO, Ken Solomon, explicitly because of his simultaneous involvement with Merit Street as board member and adviser.

Read more on Slate

These burrow-dwelling rats have a maximum life span of nearly 40 years, making them world's the longest-lived rodent.

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Technological advances may turn back aging, extending the average life span by at least a decade.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Research from the University of Kansas’ Life Span Institute found that parents rated AI-generated text as more credible, moral and trustworthy than “expert-generated content,” even as researchers found inaccurate information was being given to the parents regarding children’s health.

Read more on Salon