outspan

[ verb out-span; noun out-span ]

/ verb ˌaʊtˈspæn; noun ˈaʊtˌspæn /

South African English

verb (used with object), out·spanned, out·span·ning.

to unyoke or unhitch, as oxen from a wagon.

verb (used without object), out·spanned, out·span·ning.

to remove the yoke, harness, etc., from animals.

noun

the act or a place of outspanning.

Nearby words

outsmart, outsoar, outsold, outsole, outsource, outspan, outspeak, outspend, outspent, outspoken, outspread

Origin of outspan

1815–25; translation of Afrikaans uitspan; see out-, span²

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

Examples from the Web for outspan

Their outspan was some three or four hundred yards distant from the kraal.
The Luck of Gerard Ridgeley|Bertram Mitford
We always travelled all night, and used to outspan for five or six hours in the heat of the day to rest.
The Story of an African Farm|(AKA Ralph Iron) Olive Schreiner
Provided he struck the road, he had only to turn to his left to reach the outspan.
Camp Fire Yarns of the Lost Legion|G. Hamilton-Browne
We skirted the village on the left, and found the farm where we were to outspan.
The African Colony|John Buchan

Doubtless by now Pereira had passed me and reached the outspan.
Marie|H. Rider Haggard

British Dictionary definitions for outspan

outspan

/ Southern African /

noun (ˈaʊtˌspæn)

an area on a farm kept available for travellers to rest and refresh animals

the act of unharnessing or unyoking

verb (ˌaʊtˈspæn) -spans, -spanning or -spanned

(tr) to unharness or unyoke (animals)

(intr) to relax

Word Origin for outspan

C19: partial translation of Afrikaans uitspan, from uit out + spannen 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