span

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   The full length of time that something lasts or covers.

   The job was finished in the span of an hour.

2. 2
   verb

   To stretch or reach across a space or period of time.

   The new bridge spans the entire river.

3. 3
   noun

   The distance between the two supports of a bridge, arch, or beam.

   The explosion destroyed one span of the bridge.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Span is a Germanic word originally denoting the distance between the outstretched tips of the thumb and little finger. It was rare in Old English but was reinforced around 1300 by Old French espan; its senses “short period of time” and “arch of a bridge” developed in the late 16th and early 17th centuries respectively.

From Middle English spanne, from Old English spann, from Proto-Germanic *spannō (“span, handbreadth”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)pend- (“to stretch”). Cognate with Dutch span, spanne, German Spanne. The sense “pair of horses” is probably from Old English ġespan, ġespann (“a joining; a fastening together; clasp; yoke”), from Proto-West Germanic [Term?]. Cognate with Dutch gespan, German Gespann.

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External links

• Google Images
• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary