[stretch-out] n (1930) 1: a system of industrial operation in which workers are required to do extra work with slight or with no additional pay
2: the act of stretching out: the state of being stretched out
3: an economizing measure that spreads a limited quantity over a larger field than orig. intended: as a: a slackening of production schedules so that a quantity of goods will be produced over a longer period than initially planned b: a restructuring of a loan repayment schedule over an extended period of time