spann.1
/span/, U.S. /spæn/ 1. figurative.a1350 Geburt Jesu 40 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1875) 66 Þe tyme hem þoȝte longe Inouȝ, ech vnche hem þouȝte a sponne.a1586 Sir P. Sidney tr. Psalmes David (1823) xxxix. iii Lo, thou a spanns length mad'st my living line.a1682 Sir T. Browne Let. to Friend (1690) 9 If we reckon up only those days which God hath accepted of our Lives, a Life of good Years will hardly be a span long.† b. In collective singular with numerals. Obsolete.
a. The distance from the tip of the thumb to the tip of the little finger, or sometimes to the tip of the forefinger, when the hand is fully extended; the space equivalent to this taken as a measure of length, averaging nine inches.Frequently followed by a positive or comparative adjective.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > measurement > measurement of length > [noun] > units of length or distance > length or breadth of hand > span of hand
spanc900
shaftmentc910
hand span1854
c900 tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (1890) iv. xi. 296 Þa wæs se lichoma sponne [v.r. spanne] lengra þære þryh.
c1000 in T. Wright & R. P. Wülcker Anglo-Saxon & Old Eng. Vocab. (1884) I. 158 Palmus, span uel handbred.
a1350 in G. L. Brook Harley Lyrics (1968) 38 Swannes swyre swyþe wel ysette, a sponne lengore þen y mette.
c1380 Sir Ferumbras (1879) l. 1607 Þe swerd..clef him þanne, Til it hadde in-to is bodi i-soȝt by-nythe is brest a spanne.
14.. Sir Beues (S.) 2509 A span long þey [i.e. bristles] were, wel rowe.
c1405 (c1387–95) G. Chaucer Canterbury Tales Prol. (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 155 She hadde a fair forheed It was almoost a spanne brood I trowe.
c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 467/1 Spanne, mesure of the hand, palmus,..palmata.
1483 Cath. Angl. 351 A Spayn (A. Spane), palmus.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Judges iii. 16 Ehud made him a two edged dagger of a spanne longe.
1577 R. Holinshed Hist. Eng. 135/1 in Chron. I The space of his forheade betwixt his two eyes was a spanne broade.
1660 R. Boyle New Exper. Physico-mechanicall (1682) ix. 39 There happen'd in the great Receiver a crack of about a Span long.
1671 J. Webster Metallographia xi. 158 They go no deeper than a span or two.
1718 Free-thinker No. 47. 2 Pharao..was a Dwarf, but seven Spans high.
1757 tr. J. G. Keyssler Trav. II. 160 The diameter..is twelve common spans, or near eight feet.
1811 A. T. Thomson London Dispensatory ii. 38 The stems trailing, about a span in length.
1862 J. W. Draper Intell. Devel. Europe (1865) xiii. 303 In which there are walking about men, a span long.
ΚΠ
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 17288 + 138 So heghe be thre spane no nother graf þer is.
c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (Roxb.) xi. 43 Þai had cherubyn of gold xii. span lang.
c1450 Jacob's Well (1900) 194 Þis handle muste be iiij. spanne in lengthe.
c. Const. of (the hand) or with possessive.
ΚΠ
1607 E. Topsell Hist. Foure-footed Beastes 236 The eares of it are large and broad,..being at the least as broade as a mans spanne.
1649 Bp. J. Taylor Great Exemplar iii. 34 So must we take the measures of eternity by the span of a mans hand.
1855 A. Bain Senses & Intellect i. ii. 191 I can appreciate a distance of six or eight inches by stretching the thumb away from the fingers, as in the span of the hand.
d. figurative. Capability of spanning or grasping.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > ability > [noun]
speed971
mightOE
ferec1175
evenc1225
powerc1300
possibilityc1385
actualitya1398
actualnessa1398
mowing?a1425
virtuality1483
cana1500
canning1549
reach1556
capability1587
strain1593
capableness1594
ablesse1598
fathoma1616
dacity1636
factivitya1643
capacity1647
range1695
span1805
quality1856
faculty1859
octane1989
1805 H. K. White Let. 18 Oct. in Remains (1807) I. 177 Below the span of my auditory nerve.
2. The hand with the thumb and fingers extended, esp. as a means of measuring. Obsolete exc. archaic.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > external parts of body > limb > extremities > hand > [noun] > extended
span1535
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Isa. xl. A Who hath measured heauen with his spanne, and hath comprehended all the earth of ye worlde in thre fyngers?
1867 H. W. Longfellow tr. Dante Inferno vi. 25 My Conductor, with his spans extended, Took of the earth.
3. A thing, piece, etc., of the length of a span; a very small extent or space.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > extension in space > measurable spatial extent > smallness > [noun] > that which is small > a small space or extent
spana1400
spota1450
specka1552
pocket handkerchief1866
a1400 Sir Beues 815 A spanne of þe groin be-forn Wiþ is swerd he haþ of schoren.
1633 G. Herbert Pulley in Temple i Let the worlds riches, which dispersed lie, Contract into a span.
1635 F. Quarles Emblemes ii. xiv. 118 Lord what a nothing is this little Span, We call a Man!
1738 A. Pope Universal Prayer vi. 5 Yet not to Earth's contracted Span, Thy Goodness let me bound.
1746 J. Hervey Medit. (1818) 217 The landscape, large and spacious,..shrinks into a span.
1798 J. Ferriar Certain Var. Man 198 It was not enough..to shorten a whole nation to three spans.
1841 M. Elphinstone Hist. India II. viii. iii. 242 There was not a span free from cultivation.
1850 Ld. Tennyson In Memoriam cxv. 181 Every grain of sand that runs, And every span of shade that steals.
4.
a. A short space of time, esp. as the duration of human life; the (short) time during which a person lives.Cf. Coverdale Psalm xxxviii. 6 Thou hast made my dayes a spanne longe.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > source or principle of life > [noun] > course or span of life
life-dayOE
year-daysOE
timeOE
dayOE
lifeOE
life's timeOE
livelihoodOE
yearOE
lifetimea1300
life-whilea1300
for (also to) term of (a person's) lifea1325
coursec1384
livingc1390
voyage1390
agea1398
life's dayc1425
thread1447
racea1450
living daysc1450
natural life1461
lifeness1534
twist1568
leasec1595
span1599
clew1615
marcha1625
peregrination1653
clue1684
stamen1701
life term1739
innings1772
lifelong1814
pass-through1876
inning1885
natural1891
life cycle1915
puff1967
the world > time > duration > shortness or brevity in time > [noun] > a short or moderate space of time
weekeOE
littleOE
roomOE
stoundOE
startc1300
houra1350
furlong wayc1384
piecea1400
weea1400
speed whilec1400
hanlawhilea1500
snack1513
spirt?1550
snatch1563
fit1583
spurta1591
shortness1598
span1599
bit1653
thinking time1668
thinking-while1668
onwardling1674
way-bit1674
whilie1819
fillip1880
1599 J. Davies Nosce Teipsum 8 I know my life's a paine, and but a span.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Timon of Athens (1623) v. iv. 2 + 1 Tymon is dead, who hath out-stretcht his span.
1623 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Henry VIII iii. ii. 141 You haue scarse time To steale from Spirituall leysure, a briefe span.
1728 E. Young Odes to King xvii Jove mark'd for man A scanty span.
1742 E. Young Complaint: Night the Second 11 We censure Nature for a Span too short; That Span too short, we tax as tedious too.
1788 R. Burns Poems & Songs (1968) I. 416 Did many talents gild thy span?
1812 Ld. Byron Childe Harold: Cantos I & II ii. lxii. 92 Through their mortal span, In bloodier acts conclude those who with blood began.
1850 F. W. Robertson Serm. (1853) 3rd Ser. xiv. 176 The span granted to the butterfly the child of a single Summer, may be long.
1870 W. Morris Earthly Paradise: Pt. III 456 So strangely shift men's lives in little span.
b. Const. of life, etc.
ΚΠ
1633 G. Herbert Church Porch in Temple lxxvii Lifes poore span Make not an ell, by trifling in thy wo.
1683 W. Kennett tr. Erasmus Witt against Wisdom 81 In so short a space, as the small Span of Life.
1771 J. Beattie Minstrel: Bk. 1st xxvii. 14 Nor lessen of his life the little span.
1840 M. Somerville On Connexion Physical Sci. (ed. 5) xii. 101 In the short span of human life.
1867 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest I. iv. 281 Whose lives were really prolonged beyond the common span of human existence.
5.
a. The distance or space between the abutments of an arch, the supports of a beam, the piers of a bridge, the walls carrying a roof, etc.; the stretch or extent of this.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > distance > [noun] > distance apart > of parts of a structure
span1725
α.
β. 1736 N. Hawksmoor Short Historical Acct. London-bridge 35 The five Arches are in their Span as followeth.1736 N. Hawksmoor Short Historical Acct. London-bridge 42 The two Bridges are very large in their Span.1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. at Bridge The span of the next arch is 56 feet.1815 J. Smith Panorama Sci. & Art I. 248 The Trustees..having used it for beams in a new warehouse at Liverpool, of more than thirty feet clear span.1832 G. Downes Lett. from Continental Countries I. 484 Owing to its height, the great span of the arch is not so perceptible.1869 W. J. M. Rankine Cycl. Machine & Hand-tools Pl.F 12 The span between the standards, a, a, being 16 feet.1874 J. T. Micklethwaite Mod. Parish Churches 128 York Minster, with its choir of fifty feet span.in extended use.1832 H. Douglas Ess. Mil. Bridges (ed. 2) vii. 367 The Russians resorted to..difficult applications of carpentry, to repair this breach, which, being of considerable span [etc.].1886 J. Ruskin Præterita II. ii. 59 About the span of an English lane that would allow two carts to pass.figurative.1858 O. W. Holmes Autocrat of Breakfast-table i. 15 The great minds are those with a wide span, which couple truths related to, but far removed from, each other.1889 Spectator 5 Oct. Congresses might be dismissed on the ground that it is impossible they can do anything to widen the span of knowledge.1725 W. Halfpenny Art of Sound Building Pref. For want of knowing, when the Arch of either Spand being given, what must be the Arch of the other.
1725 W. Halfpenny Art of Sound Building 20 Set off the Spand of the Intersecting Arch from v. to t.
1751 W. Halfpenny Designs Chinese Bridges i. 7 A double truss'd Timber Bridge, whose Spand between the top of the Butment is 45 Feet.
b. (See first quot. 1856.) rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Ungulata (hoofed) > group Ruminantia (sheep, goats, cows, etc.) > male > [noun] > body and parts > antler > width of
span1856
1856 ‘Stonehenge’ Man. Brit. Rural Sports i. i. x. § 1. 82 The three first [antlers] are termed the rights;..the horn itself, the beam; the width, the span.
1873 W. Black Princess of Thule xxv. 414 You will discourse..of the span and the pearls, of the antlers and the crockets.
c. Psychology. Mental extent; the amount of information that the mind can be conscious of at a given moment, or the number of items it can reproduce after one presentation; esp. const. of, as span of apprehension, attention span, consciousness span, etc. Cf. memory span n. at memory n. Compounds 2.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > psychology > developmental psychology > acquisition of knowledge > [noun] > mental scope
span1887
1887 Mind 12 76 The highest number correctly reproduced is to be regarded as the limit which we wish to find, and which we term here the span.
1887 Mind 12 79 We might expect that ‘span of prehension’ should be an important factor in determining mental grasp.
1890 W. James Princ. Psychol. I. xi. 405 The question of the ‘span’ of consciousness [sc. to how many things can we attend at once] has often been asked and answered.
1922 R. S. Woodworth Psychol. xi. 262 The ‘span of attention’ for objects..is measured by discovering how many such objects can be clearly seen, or heard, or felt, in a single instant of time. Measurement of this ‘span’ is one of the oldest experiments in psychology.
1945 Mind 54 165 She reduced the number of choices to a range lying within or just within the ‘span of attention’ of her subjects.
1971 Jrnl. Gen. Psychol. Jan. 129 No matter how high the level of luminance, the span of apprehensions will not exceed eight items during the critical interval.
1979 R. Jaffe Class Reunion (1980) iii. ii. 312 The child was very bright and had a long attention span.
d. The maximum lateral dimension of an aircraft, or of a wing, from wing tip to wing tip.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > air or space travel > a means of conveyance through the air > aeroplane > qualities and parameters of aircraft > [noun] > maximum lateral dimension
span1909
1909 R. Kennedy Flying Machines ii. 34 It will be difficult to get a monoplane of sufficient span for heavy lifts, together with a strong construction.
1910 Sphere 20 Aug. 177/2 Its triple planes and short span render the Roe machine easily distinguishable.
1913 Aeroplane 30 Oct. 480/1 Its small span and carefully streamlined body.
1919 A. J. S. Pippard & J. L. Pritchard Aeroplane Struct. 136 When the total effective span or the effective area of each wing is known.
1927 C. L. M. Brown Conquest of Air vii. 98 It was a biplane, the two main wings being 32 ft. in frontal width (span) and 5 ft. in depth (chord).
1953 New Biol. 14 73 A vulture has a broad wing of large surface area as well as large span.
1968 R. Miller & D. Sawers Technical Devel. Mod. Aviation v. 137 For the first time Douglas made a basic change in the wing..and increased the span by 10 feet to give greater lift and fuel capacity.
e. A range of numerical values; the difference between the highest and lowest values in a range.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > probability or statistics > [noun] > distribution > variability or spread > measures of
quartile deviation1894
standard deviation1895
s.d.1902
subrange1903
range1911
variance1918
span1962
sigma1978
1962 Gloss. Terms Automatic Data Processing (B.S.I.) 13 Range. 1. All the values which a quantity may have. 2. The difference between the highest and lowest of these values (in mathematics often called the span).
1974 Physics Bull. Jan. 31/3 The series covers the temperature range 223 to 573 K in eight spans.
f. span of control n. in Business Studies, the area of activity, number of functions or subordinates, etc., for which an individual or organization is responsible.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > duties > [noun] > extent of responsibility
span of control1937
1937 L. Gulick in Gulick & Urwick Papers on Sci. of Administration i. 7 Span of control. Just as the hand of man can span only a limited number of notes on the piano, so the mind and will of man can span but a limited number of immediate managerial contacts.
1956 E. Bridges in A. Dunsire Making of Administrator 5 He will look to see that too many people are not reporting to any one head—that the ‘span of control’ or of management as they call it, is not too wide.
1962 Rep. Comm. Broadcasting 1960 226 in Parl. Papers 1961–2 (Cmnd. 1753) X. 259 Since there might well be some scores of companies, it is highly unlikely that a corporation could exercise its responsibilities effectively; the ‘span of control’ would be too great.
1976 P. R. White Planning for Public Transport i. 20 Operation of private party coach hire or excursions may require frequent decisions on pricing and scheduling, and hence a small span of control for each manager is desirable.
6.
a. An arch of a bridge; a section between two piers. Also transferred, the vault of the sky.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the universe > sky, heavens > [noun]
roofeOE
welkinc825
heaveneOE
heightOE
heavenOE
liftOE
loftOE
welkin1122
skies?a1289
firmamentc1290
skewa1300
spherea1300
skewsc1320
hemispherec1374
cope of heavenc1380
clouda1400
skya1425
elementc1485
axle-treea1522
scrowc1540
pole1572
horizona1577
vaulta1586
round?1593
the cope1596
pend1599
floor1600
canopy1604
cope1609
expansion1611
concameration1625
convex1627
concave1635
expansum1635
blue1647
the expanse1667
blue blanket1726
empyrean1727
carry1788
span1803
overhead1865
society > travel > means of travel > route or way > other means of passage or access > [noun] > bridge > parts of
pierlOE
bridge foota1450
heada1450
staddling1461
foota1500
bridge end1515
jowel1516
causey1523
starling?c1684
rib1735
spur1736
icebreaker1744
jetty1772
cutwater1776
roadway1798
sleeper1823
water-breaker1823
centrya1834
stem1835
suspension-tower1842
cantilever1850
semi-beam1850
pylon1851
half-chess1853
span1862
sway-bracing1864
needle-beam1867
ice apron1871
newel1882
flood-arch1891
needle girder1898
sway-brace1909
trough flooring1911
1803 H. K. White Sonn. in Clifton Grove 107 In the drear silence of the polar span Dost thou repose?
1862 Rep. Direct. E. Midl. Railway Cy. 18 Six spans of the Keeul Bridge are erected since I last reported on the subject.
1891 Lovett U.S. Pictures 39 The total weight of the whole central span is 6,740 tons.
b. Nautical. (See quot. 1846.)
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > equipment of vessel > masts, rigging, or sails > rigging > [noun] > fixed rigging > rigging supporting mast laterally > length of shrouds
span1846
1846 A. Young Naut. Dict. 289 A Span of Rigging, implies the length of shrouds from the dead-eyes on one side, over the mast-head, to the dead-eyes on the other side of the ship.
c. A stretch, line, or extent of something.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > extension in space > measurable spatial extent > longitudinal extent > [noun] > that which has length > a long or continuous extent of something
range1601
swath?1606
length1609
swartha1616
stretch1661
ringe1706
span1894
1894 Outing 23 374/1 The cocoa-nuts hanging from the long, almost unbroken span of cocoa palms that line the beach.
7. Mathematics. That which is generated by the elements of some set. Cf. span v.1 6.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > mathematical number or quantity > numerical arrangement > [noun] > set > elements in or parts of > generated by
span1968
1968 D. Passman Permutation Groups ii. 155 We define the span of A, Span A, to be the subspace of FG spanned by all the functions aij. We list some basic properties of the span.
1981 Sci. Amer. Oct. 153 (caption) Their [sc. vectors'] span is a plane because any point in the plane can be reached by vectorially adding some scalar multiple of A to some scalar multiple of B.
Compounds
C1. General attributive.
a.
span-breadth n.
ΚΠ
1604 E. Grimeston tr. J. de Acosta Nat. & Morall Hist. Indies iv. viii. 228 In the largest place they have six foote, and in the narrowest a spanne bredth.
span-extent n.
ΚΠ
1650 H. Vaughan Silex Scintillans 11 At last..She wing'd away, And proud with life, and sence, Heav'ns rich Expence, Esteem'd..of two whole Elements As meane, and span-extents.
span-girth adj.
ΚΠ
1807 G. Crabbe Parish Reg. iii, in Poems 131 No more his span-girth Shanks and quiv'ring Thighs, Upheld a Body of the smaller Size.
span-length n.
ΚΠ
c1450 Jacob's Well (1900) 170 Þe secunde spanne lengthe of þe handyll.
1749 T. Nugent Grand Tour II. 306 They make steel chains so prodigious fine of a span length, that [etc.].
span-line n.
ΚΠ
1838 Penny Cycl. XI. 325/2 The shorter radii describing the two quadrants at the spring of the arch, are upon the span-line itself.
b. (In sense 5c.)
span test n.
ΚΠ
1971 Jrnl. Gen. Psychol. 84 238 We have here a well-defined figural-span measure which does not link with other span tests.
c.
span-broad adj. poetic
ΚΠ
1599 T. Nashe Lenten Stuffe 19 In the correlatiue analagie of the spanbroad rowse running betwixt.
span-lived adj.
ΚΠ
1846 C. G. Prowett tr. Æschylus Prometheus Bound 26 Can that span-lived race avail To succour thee in this distress?
d.
spanlong adj.
ΚΠ
1957 E. Blunden Poems of Many Years 281 Spanlong rabbits quite forget danger's eye.
span-wide adj.
ΚΠ
1943 E. Muir Narrow Place 7 Was this the ground That stretched beyond the span-wide world-wide ditch.
C2.
span loading n. Aeronautics the gross weight of an aircraft divided by its wing span or, more commonly, by the square of the wing span; also transferred, of a bird.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > birds > parts of or bird defined by > [noun] > wing or wings > expanse or extent of wings ( and tail) > weight divided by wing span
span loading1929
society > travel > air or space travel > a means of conveyance through the air > aeroplane > qualities and parameters of aircraft > [noun] > ratio of weight to span or area of wing
wing loading1912
loading1918
span loading1929
1929 Jrnl. Royal Aeronaut. Soc. 33 359 This..depends primarily on ‘span loading’ that is weight/(span)2.
1953 New Biol. 14 72 The sinking speed is a function of the ‘span loading’, i.e. weight/wing span. A low sinking speed can only be achieved by having a wing span which is large relative to the weight of the bird.
1983 D. Stinton Design of Aeroplane iv. 120 In straight and level flight the lift loading across the span..is equal to..the weight of the aircraft divided by the wingspan. Both are referred to collectively as the span loading.
span wire n. each of the series of wires suspended across the route of a tram or trolleybus to carry the overhead electric wire.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > means of travel > a conveyance > vehicle > public service vehicle > [noun] > trolley car or bus > overhead wires and attachments
span wire1891
trolley-bar1891
pull-off1892
plough1894
trolley-pole1895
trolley-wire1895
trolley-ear1898
trolley-hanger1898
trolley-harp1904
feeder ear1924
1891 Electr. World 21 Mar. 225/1 In the case of side pole and span wire, construction poles should be placed at the points represented and a span wire run between them.
1963 A. T. Dover Electr. Traction (ed. 4) xxiii. 358 At curves the span wire must be on a level with the trolley wire, otherwise the hangar will be pulled out of the vertical.
span-worm n. U.S. = looper n.1
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > Heterocera > [noun] > family Geometridae > class of caterpillars > member of
surveyor1682
looper1731
span-worm1820
geometric caterpillar1835
measuring worm1843
span-worm1852
inch-worma1861
measurer1868
loop-worm1880
1820 Amer. Farmer I. 375/3 What can our obliging correspondents tell us about the..best method of destroying that dreadful plague of our orchards, the span worm.
1903 W. J. Holland Moth Bk. 323 The larvæ, which are commonly known as ‘measuring-worms’, ‘span-worms’, or ‘loopers’, have the power in many cases of attaching themselves by the posterior claspers to the stems and branches of plants, and extending the remainder of the body outwardly at an angle.
1972 L. A. Swan & C. S. Papp Common Insects N. Amer. xix. 293 The Bruce spanworm is a major defoliator of aspen in the prairie regions.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1913; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
spann.2
/span/, U.S. /spæn/ 1. Nautical. One or other of various ropes or chains used as fastenings or means of connection (see quots.).
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > equipment of vessel > ropes or chains other than rigging or cable > [noun] > rope used for fastening or connecting
span1769
1769 W. Falconer Universal Dict. Marine Span, a small line..the middle of which is usually attached to a stay, from whence the two ends branch outwards to the right and left, and having either a block or thimble attached to their extremities.
1794 D. Steel Elements & Pract. Rigging & Seamanship II. 281 Each of these chains has..a large iron ring, to which is fastened a chain, called an up-and-down span.
1841 R. H. Dana Seaman's Man. 124 Span, a rope with both ends made fast, for a purchase to be hooked to its bight.
1846 A. Young Naut. Dict. 289 Span,..a double rope with thimbles seized betwixt the two parts, stretched across the rigging as a fair-leader for ropes.
c1860 H. Stuart Novices or Young Seaman's Catech. (rev. ed.) 8 What tackles are used for hoisting the launch in and out? The stays (fitted with a span) between the fore and main mast.
c1860 H. Stuart Novices or Young Seaman's Catech. (rev. ed.) 55 A chain span is shackled to the bolts, and the slips are rove round the span and shackled to the cable.
1894 Labour Commission Gloss. 76 Span, a length of chain or wire rope used for suspending ‘derricks’..to the masts of ships.
2. U.S. and Canadian. A pair of horses harnessed and driven together, esp. a pair as nearly alike in colour and size as possible.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Ungulata (hoofed) > family Equidae (general equines) > horse defined by purpose used for > [noun] > draught-horse > that pulls vehicle > pair of
pair1649
span1769
tandem1795
1769 Boston Gaz. 2 Oct. Wanted, a Spann of good Horses for a Curricle.
1827 P. Cunningham Two Years New S. Wales II. xxi. 61 A span (pair) of horses is a common expression through all the state of New York, and even as far as Upper Canada.
1840 T. C. Haliburton Clockmaker 3rd Ser. xviii. 248 If any man will show me a hoss that can keep it up as he has done.., I'll give him old Clay for nothin', as a span for him.
1841 G. Catlin Lett. N. Amer. Indians II. xlv. 81 A snug span of little horses.
1883 Harper's Mag. Mar. 572/1 She had her open landau and her span for summer driving.
3. South African. A team of oxen or other draught animals consisting of two or more yokes.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > domestic animal > [noun] > work animals > draught animal > team of
teamOE
yokeOE
draught?1523
teamware1567
plough team1726
work team1809
span1812
farm team1818
spike-team1848
1812 A. Plumptre tr. H. Lichtenstein Trav. S. Afr. I. 192 They could not get on the rest of the way without a double Spann.
1850 R. Gordon-Cumming Five Years Hunter's Life S. Afr. II. xxiii. 149 My large waggon..stuck fast, and was at length extricated with the help of another span.
1893 F. C. Selous Trav. S.-E. Afr. 13 The fine span of oxen that had belonged to Mr. Collinson.
4. A fetter or shackle. (Cf. span v.2 1b.)
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > subjection > restraint or restraining > restraint depriving of liberty > binding or fettering > [noun] > bond(s) or fetter(s) or shackle(s)
bendc890
shacklea1000
bandc1175
bonda1325
aneus1360
warlockc1400
leashc1430
link?a1500
shackle1540
cramp-ring1567
locketa1643
restraint1650
pinion1733
manacle1838
span1856
1856 J. G. Whittier Panorama 322 To them the Law is but the iron span That girds the ankles of imbruted man.
Draft additions 1993
b. A team or gang, esp. of workers; a work party.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > worker > [noun] > group of workers
work team1809
labour brigade1886
lads1888
span1913
work group1928
society > occupation and work > worker > [noun] > group of workers > doing work of mutual or social benefit
work party1823
work group1923
span1956
1913 M. Cleaver Young S. African 75 I suppose the old span in the Specials [i.e. police] is getting less and less as they are drafted off to the front.
1949 H. C. Bosman Cold Stone Jug 107 I said..that we were greatly privileged to have Jimmy Gair in our span. He reflected very great honour on the stone-yard.
1956 A. Sampson Drum xiv. 190 After breakfast we were divided into many work ‘spans’ (parties). I spent my first day with a span cutting grass.
1969 A. Paton Kontakion 87 The group with which each boy paraded was called his span, which is the Afrikaans word for ‘team’ or ‘gang’.
1976 Darling (Durban) 3 Mar. 67 I have six labourers... I try to lead by example... I can do this with a small span of six, but when there are more their negative attitudes are too strong for me.
1986 M. Dingake in N. Mandela Struggle is my Life iii. ii. 222 There was a possible glimpse of some communal section span..hidden in the wood along the road to give us a clear passage.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1913; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
spann.3
dialect and Historical.
A certain measure of butter (in Orkney and the north of Scotland).
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > dairy produce > butter > [noun] > specific amount or measure
span1502
churning1886
1502 in A. Peterkin Rentals Earldom & Bishoprick of Orkney (1820) 4 In butter scat j span.
1502 in A. Peterkin Rentals Earldom & Bishoprick of Orkney (1820) 4 In butter scat uther half span.
1861 C. Innes Sketches Early Sc. Hist. 77 It was the established usage of Caithness, that for every score of cows a span of butter should be paid to the bishop.
1872 A. P. Forbes Kalendars Sc. Saints 262 The usage was to take a span of butter for every twenty cows.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1913; most recently modified version published online March 2020).
spanv.1
/span/, U.S. /spæn/ I. transitive.† 1. To grasp, lay hold of, seize. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > absence of movement > hold or holding > hold [verb (transitive)] > lay hold of or grasp
i-fangc888
gripc950
repeOE
befongOE
keepc1000
latchc1000
hentOE
begripec1175
becatchc1200
fang?c1200
i-gripea1225
warpa1225
fastenc1225
arepa1250
to set (one's) hand(s onc1290
kip1297
cleach?a1300
hendc1300
fasta1325
reachc1330
seizec1374
beclipc1380
takea1387
span1398
to seize on or upon1399
getc1440
handc1460
to catch hold1520
to take hold1530
to lay hold (up)on, of1535
grasple1553
to have by the backa1555
handfast1562
apprehend1572
grapple1582
to clap hold of1583
comprehend1584
graspa1586
attach1590
gripple1591
engrasp1593
clum1594
to seize of1600
begriple1607
fast hold1611
impalm1611
fista1616
to set (one's) hand to1638
to get one's hands on1649
1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomew de Glanville De Proprietatibus Rerum (Bodl.) xviii. xxxviii [The dragon] lurkeþ in weies where þe Elephaunte goþ and bindeþ and spanneþ his legges and sleeþ hym and strangeleþ hym.
c1475 (?c1425) Avowing of King Arthur (1984) l. 193 Þenne þe kinge spanes his spere Opon þat bore for to bere.
1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) iii. 582 And newys..That wont to spayn gret speris war, Swa spaynyt aris, that men mycht se.
1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid iii. iii. 111 Doun fallis sailis, the airis sone we span.
2. † b. To measure in any way. Obsolete.† c. To measure out; to set a limit or bound to (life, etc.). Obsolete.
a. To measure by means of the outstretched hand; to cover with the hand in this way. †to span farthings, to play at span-farthing.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > measurement > measurement of length > measure (off) a length or distance [verb (transitive)] > using the outstretched hand
span1560
1560 Bible (Geneva) Isa. xlviii. 13 My right hand hathe spanned the heauens.
1570 P. Levens Manipulus Vocabulorum sig. Biii/1 To Span, palmare.
1621 T. W. tr. S. Goulart Wise Vieillard 185 That we should take vpon vs to spanne with our fingers, and measure with our arme the miracles of God.
1688 S. Penton Guardian's Instr. 55 His main design is to..go home again to spanning farthings.
1706 J. Stevens New Spanish Dict. i Xéme, half a Foot, or as much as a Man can span with his Thumb and Fore-finger.
1818 J. Keats Endymion i. 27 For still, with Delphic emphasis, she spann'd The quick invisible strings [of the lute].
1866 J. E. Brogden Provinc. Words Lincs. Span, to measure a distance by flattening the hand and stretching the thumb and middle finger.
1899 Notes & Queries 9th Ser. 3 185/1 So that he could span the distance by the fingers of the hand.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > measurement > measure [verb (transitive)]
bemetec893
meteOE
mensurec1429
gaugec1440
measure1456
to take a scantling of1585
fathom1611
admetiate1623
quantify1627
span1641
to take (also get) the measure of1650
mensurate1653
to take the gauge of1780
spoil1794
quantitate1900
pace1955
1641 J. Milton Reason Church-govt. 4 To comprehend the hidden causes of things, and span in his thoughts all the various effects that passion..can worke in mans nature.
1648 J. Milton To H. Lawes in H. Lawes Choice Psalmes sig. av Harry, whose tunefull and well measur'd song First taught our English Music how to span Words with just note and accent.
1717 T. Tickell Epist. from Lady to Gent. at Avignon 3 Oft on the well-known Spot I fix my Eyes, And Span the Distance that between us lies.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > quality of being special or restricted in application > quality of being restricted or limited > restrict or limit [verb (transitive)] > set a limit to
define1513
stint1513
appointa1533
terminate1602
span1623
bourn1807
1623 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Henry VIII i. i. 224 My life is spand already: I am the shadow of poore Buckingham. View more context for this quotation
1633 G. Herbert Bunch of Grapes in Temple ii For as the Jews of old by God's command Travell'd, and saw no town; So now each Christian hath his journeys spann'd.
1657 Bp. H. King Elegy on G. Adolphus in Poems (1843) 71 Death hath spann'd thee.
d. To encircle or encompass (the waist, wrist, etc.) with the hand or hands.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > absence of movement > hold or holding > hold [verb (transitive)] > span or embrace with the hands
span1781
nurse1803
1781 W. Cowper Truth 155 She recollects her youth, And tells, not always with an eye to truth, Who spann'd her waist.
1809 S. T. Coleridge Three Graves iv, in Friend 21 Sept. 94 And oft she said, ‘I'm not grown thin!’ And then her wrist she spann'd.
1830 F. Marryat King's Own II. iv. 56 ‘If I ever am in your list, I presume it will be for a case of plethora,’ replied Jerry, spanning his thin waist.
1841 R. Browning Pippa Passes iii, in Bells & Pomegranates No. I 13/1 How your plump arms..have dropped away! Why, I can span them!
3.
a. Of the rainbow, a bridge, etc.: To form an arch across or over (the sky, a river, etc.); to stretch or extend over in the form of an arch; to cross from side to side. Also transferred or figurative.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > extension in space > extend [verb (transitive)] > extend over or across > from either side
flekec1330
span1633
bestride1728
bridge1787
arch1796
straddle1890
(a)
(b)1736 N. Hawksmoor Short Historical Acct. London-bridge 40 The Bridge at Rochester..spans a noble and deep River, 550 Feet wide.1833 L. Ritchie Wanderings by Loire 7 The bridge..spans the stream with nine wide arches.1853 H. Douglas Ess. Mil. Bridges (ed. 3) iii. 177 The width [of the river] here was 700 feet, and twenty-seven boats were required to span it.1869 H. F. Tozer Res. Highlands of Turkey I. 201 Its waters are spanned by a fine stone bridge.1633 G. Herbert Content in Temple v This soul doth span the world, and hang content From either pole unto the centre.
1743 E. Young Complaint: Night the Fourth 25 He looks down On All that soars; and spans Immensity.
1781 W. Cowper Table Talk 702 Fancy, that from the bow that spans the sky Brings colours.
1816 P. B. Shelley To Peacock 12 July A rainbow spanned the lake.
1866 J. M. Neale Sequences & Hymns 123 O, sweet Rainbow,..That some day, One Onely Church shall span.
1881 D. G. Rossetti House of Life xii Two souls softly spann'd With one o'erarching heaven of smiles and sighs.
b. transferred. To reach or extend over (space or time).
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > extension in space > extend [verb (transitive)] > extend over or across
overstretch?a1425
span1624
percur1657
overspan1697
surmount1829
the world > time > duration > have duration [verb (transitive)] > reach or extend over a period of time
containc1374
span1624
cover1863
comprise1870
1624 J. Donne Deuotions iv. 67 Our thoughts,..that doe not onely bestride all the Sea, and Land, but span the Sunn and Firmament at once.
1872 H. P. Liddon Some Elements Relig. ii. 39 His thought spans the intervening desert.
1879 A. W. Ward Chaucer i. 5 Chaucer's life..spans rather more than the latter half of the fourteenth century.
4.
a. To stretch out (the thumb) as in spanning.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > posture > position of specific body parts > position specific body part [verb (transitive)] > arms or hands > specific hand
clutch1609
span1676
unweave1863
outfinger1880
strain1888
tent1966
steeple1968
1676 T. Mace Musick's Monument 74 Bring up your Left-Hand from the Table, bended, just like the Talents of a Hawk; All, excepting your Thumb, which must stand Strait; and Span'd out.
b. To throw as an arch or bridge.
ΚΠ
a1861 T. Woolner Day Dream in My Beautiful Lady 30 Clutching at rainbows spanned across the sky!
5. in extended use.1871 B. Jowett tr. Plato Dialogues I. 519 This power spans the chasm which divides them.1876 J. S. Blackie Songs Relig. & Life 233 Not in vain God with lavish blooms of beauty Spanned the slope, and sowed the plain.
a. To throw a bridge across (a river, etc.); to bridge over.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > extension in space > extend [verb (transitive)] > extend over or across > from either side > span a space with something
horsea1616
overspan1703
span1861
society > travel > means of travel > route or way > other means of passage or access > [verb (transitive)] > span with a bridge
overbridgeeOE
bridgeOE
land1637
span1861
1861 S. Smiles Lives Engineers II. 176 Telford spanned both these straits with suspension road bridges.
1876 R. Routledge Discov. 19th Cent. 1 Science has spanned great rivers and estuaries with bridges of form unknown to our fathers.
b. To cross (a bridge). rare.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > [verb (transitive)] > cross or pass over > cross a bridge
span1894
1894 H. H. Gardener Unofficial Patriot 121 The Long Bridge was spanned and the strange party drove down Pennsylvania Avenue.
6. Mathematics. To generate. Cf. span n.1 7.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > mathematical number or quantity > tensor > use vectors [verb (transitive)]
span1941
1941 G. Birkhoff & S. MacLane Surv. Mod. Algebra vii. 170 This subspace is evidently the smallest subspace containing all the given vectors; hence it is called the subspace generated or spanned by them.
1964 A. P. Robertson & W. Robertson Topol. Vector Spaces i. 3 If L is a linearly independent subset of a vector space E and if S is a subset containing L and spanning E, there is a base B of E with L ⊂ B ⊂ S.
1981 Sci. Amer. Oct. 156/2 For example, the u–v plane is a vector space that can be spanned by two vectors directed along the positive u and v axes.
II. absol.
7. To make a span over something; to reach with or as with a span; to stretch or range from one place or point to another. Chiefly figurative.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > extension in space > extend in space [verb (intransitive)]
bredeOE
comeOE
ylasta1175
drawc1180
areachc1225
lastc1275
tillc1290
durea1300
reachc1330
spreada1400
halec1400
reignc1400
splatec1440
extend1481
endure1523
span1535
discoursea1547
wina1578
distend1581
intend1594
sweep1789
outlie1876
the world > space > extension in space > extend in space [verb (intransitive)] > span a space
span1535
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Isa. xlviii. C My honde is the foundacion of the earth, & my right honde spanneth ouer the heauens.
1592 J. Lyly Midas v. iii. 104 Though my hande bee golde, yet I must not thinke to span ouer the maine Ocean.
a1652 J. Smith Select Disc. (1660) vi. xiii. 278 The Prophetical Spirit..is most quick, spanning as it were from the Centre to the Circumference.
1657 Bp. H. King Elegy on G. Adolphus in Poems (1843) 71 Thou might'st Vienna reach, and after span From Mulda to the Baltick Ocean.
1899 Notes & Queries 9th Ser. 3 185/1 If he..spanned accordingly, the button of the first player became his.
1976 Offshore Platforms & Pipelining 151/1 Any relatively stiff pipeline laid in a wavy seabed will span in places.
8. Whaling. (See quot. 1888.)
ΚΠ
1888 Encycl. Brit. XXIV. 526/2 If the whale is ‘spanning’, i.e., swimming in a decided direction and appearing at the surface at intervals more or less regular.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1913; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
spanv.2
/span/, U.S. /spæn/ 1. 1793 J. Baxter Jrnl. 2 Feb. in Amer. Speech (1965) XL. 199 I and John Schenck spaned in together.1836 A. F. Gardiner Narr. Journey Zoolu Country 303 We left Berea, and spanned out on the flat.1858 P. L. Simmonds Dict. Trade Products Span,..to attach draught cattle to a wagon.1894 Westm. Gaz. 11 Sept. 8/1 So one day he spanned-in his mules..and leisurely trekked to the widow's homestead.
a. transitive. To harness or yoke (oxen, horses, etc.); to attach to a vehicle. Also with in and out: see inspan v. and outspan v.1 (Cf. spang v.3) Also absol.In later use chiefly from South African Dutch.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > general equipment > [verb (transitive)] > harness or yoke
yokeOE
harness13..
cart-saddle1377
join1377
couple1393
enharness1490
benda1522
bind1535
span1550
team1552
spang1580
inyoke1595
trace1605
enclose?1615
gear1638
to get in1687
reharness1775
reyoke1813
to hook up1825
inspan1834
hitch1844
pole1846
stock1909
1550 M. Coverdale tr. O. Werdmueller Spyrytuall & Precyouse Pearle vi. sig. Diijv He spannyth hys oxen, and goeth to the feld.
1644 E. Walsingham Brit. Virtutis Imago 15 Whil'st horses were span'd in to draw off the peices.
1656 W. Davenant Siege of Rhodes v. 39 Those Horses to that Carriage Span! Drive, drive!
b. dialect. To fetter or shackle (a horse).
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > general equipment > [verb (transitive)] > hobble
warlocka1400
langlec1440
hopple1586
impester1601
trammel1607
wisp1607
spancel1610
side-hankle1627
sidelanga1642
sidelangle1660
side-span1660
hamshackle1802
hobble1804
twitchel1826
sideline1837
span1847
heel1887
1847 in J. O. Halliwell Dict. Archaic & Provinc. Words
1865 R. Hunt Pop. Romances W. Eng. (1871) 1st Ser. 112 There, by the roadside, stood an old, bony white horse, spanned with its halter.
c. transferred. To enclose or confine.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being external > enclosing or enclosure > enclosing or confining > enclose or confine [verb (transitive)]
pena1200
bebar?c1225
loukc1275
beshuta1300
parc1300
to shut in1398
to close inc1400
parrockc1400
pinc1400
steekc1400
lock?a1425
includec1425
key?a1439
spare?c1450
enferme1481
terminea1500
bebay1511
imprisona1533
besetc1534
hema1552
ram1567
warda1586
closet1589
pound1589
seclude1598
confine1600
i-pend1600
uptie1600
pinfold1605
boundify1606
incoop1608
to round in1609
ring1613
to buckle ina1616
embounda1616
swathe1624
hain1636
coopa1660
to sheathe up1661
stivea1722
cloister1723
span1844
1844 J. R. Lowell Fatherland i Doth not the yearning spirit scorn In such scant borders to be spanned?
2.
a. To stretch, extend, make taut or tight; to draw (a bow). Now archaic.The sense appears earlier under spanning n.2
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > constitution of matter > hardness > types of hardness > [verb (transitive)] > make taut
stretcha1387
bracec1440
wrench1577
span1598
tend1646
span1650
screw1657
tauten1777
tensify1869
tense1884
tension1891
society > armed hostility > military equipment > operation and use of weapons > action of propelling missile > use of bow and arrow > shoot (arrow) [verb (transitive)] > draw (bow)
drawc1275
twang1600
updraw1600
span1878
1598 A. M. tr. J. Guillemeau Frenche Chirurg. 45 b/1 The Ligature wil in one place be loosened, and in another spanned.
1598 A. M. tr. J. Guillemeau Frenche Chirurg. 20/1 Where as the inferior parte of the bellye is full of windes, and stiflye stretched out and spanned.
1658 W. Johnson tr. F. Würtz Surgeons Guid i. vii. 28 The stitches [in a wound] are so pull'd and spann'd, that they tear out.
1658 W. Johnson tr. F. Würtz Surgeons Guid ii. xxv. 155 With both hands keep it asunder, that the skin be spanned asunder.
1878 B. Taylor Prince Deukalion iii. i. 99 New bows I span, new arrows fill my quiver.
b. figurative with up.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > constitution of matter > hardness > types of hardness > [verb (transitive)] > make taut
stretcha1387
bracec1440
wrench1577
span1598
tend1646
span1650
screw1657
tauten1777
tensify1869
tense1884
tension1891
1650 H. Vaughan Silex Scintillans 52 Be there, before the shadows stretch, and Span up night.
1655 H. Vaughan Silex Scintillans (ed. 2) i. 73 Faith spans up blisse.
3. † a. To wind up the wheel-lock of (a pistol or musket) by means of a spanner. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military equipment > operation and use of weapons > action of propelling missile > discharge of firearms > fire (a gun) [verb (transitive)] > raise cock > wind up wheel-lock
span1639
1639 R. Ward Animadversions of Warre 296 In Marching or Trooping through a Towne forget not to have your Peeces spand.
1639 R. Ward Animadversions of Warre 299 Span your Pistoll—This is performed by sinking the Pistoll into his Bridle hand, and taking the Spanner in his right hand, to put it upon the axeltree, and winding about the wheele till it sticke.
1649 C. Walker Anarchia Anglicana ii. 249 A party of Horse..with Swords drawne and their pistols spanned.
c1672 F. P. Verney & M. M. Verney Mem. Verney Family 17th Cent. (1907) II. 345 Having Pistols before me, I drew one and held it in my hand, so that I could span it in a moment for ffear of a surprise.
b. To screw tight with a spanner.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > industry > working with tools or equipment > work with tools or equipment [verb (transitive)] > wrench or spanner
span1859
monkeywrench1904
1859 F. A. Griffiths Artillerist's Man. (ed. 8) 209 5. Gives shot and wad to 3, runs out, trains, and spans the breeching.
4. Nautical. To fix, attach, fasten, or draw tight in some way. Also with in.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > fastening > fasten [verb (transitive)]
fastenOE
truss?c1225
clitch?a1300
fasta1300
cadgea1400
lacec1425
claspa1450
tie?a1513
tether1563
spar1591
befast1674
span1781
1781 Lieut. Archer Let. 30 June in Naval Chron. (1804) 11 287 Spaned the booms; saw the boats all made fast.
1820 W. Scoresby Acct. Arctic Regions II. 231 A harpoon thus prepared with foreganger and stock, is said to be ‘spanned in’.
1852 R. Burn Naval & Mil. Techn. Dict. French Lang. (ed. 2) ii. 249 To span in the rigging, serrer le haut des haubans.
1852 R. Burn Naval & Mil. Techn. Dict. French Lang. (ed. 2) ii. 249 To span in the runners, prendre un retour d'itagues, et les aiguilleter.
1867 W. H. Smyth & E. Belcher Sailor's Word-bk. 640 Spanning a harpoon, fixing the line which connects the harpoon and its staff.
1867 W. H. Smyth & E. Belcher Sailor's Word-bk. 640 To span in the rigging, to draw the upper parts of the shrouds together by tackles, in order to seize on the cat-harping legs.
5. intransitive. Of horses: To form a span or pair; to match in colour and size. U.S.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Ungulata (hoofed) > family Equidae (general equines) > horse defined by purpose used for > [verb (intransitive)] > form a pair
span1828
1828 N. Webster Amer. Dict. Eng. Lang. (at cited word) The horses span well. (New England.)
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1913; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
† spanv.3
Obsolete. rare.
transitive. To allure, entice, or draw away (a person).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > will > motivation > attraction, allurement, or enticement > attract, allure, or entice [verb (transitive)] > away
ofdraw?c1225
spana1250
to draw awayc1384
slock1483
steal1526
over-tempt1643
a1250 Owl & Nightingale 1490 To mysdo one gode manne & his ibedde from him spanne.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1913; most recently modified version published online June 2021).
> see also
also refers to : span-comb. form
<
n.1c900n.21769
n.31502v.11398v.21550
v.3a1250see also
- neural cell adhesion molecule
- neural computer
- neural computing
- neural crest
- neural net
- neural network
- neural plate
- neural spine
- neural tube
- neural tube defect
- neuraler
- neuralest
- neuralgia
- neuralgiac
- neuralgias
- neuralgic
- neuralgically
- neuralization
- neuralized
- neuralizing
- neuraller
- neurallest
- neurallier
- neuralliest
- neurally