I. ˈstrech verb
( -ed/-ing/-es )
Etymology: Middle English strecchen, strechen, from Old English streccan; akin to Old Frisian strekka to stretch, Middle Dutch strecken, Old High German strecchan to stretch, Old English stræc, strec firm, rigid, Middle High German & Middle Dutch strac straight, stiff, Old High German starēn to stare — more at stare
transitive verb
1. : to extend (as oneself, one's limbs, or one's body) in a reclining position — often used with out
stretched himself out on the bed
2. : to reach out : hold out : put forth : extend
stretched his arm to take the book — Cedomilj Mijatovic
stretched forth a lean and quivering hand — Zane Grey
the tree stretched its branches over the road
3.
a. : to extend in length
stretch one's arms
stretched his legs cautiously
b. : to expand (wings) especially for flight
4. : to cause (as a person) to lie at full length:
a. chiefly dialect : to lay out for burial
b. : to fell with or as if with a blow
fired again … and stretched him dying upon the sand — R.W.Thorp
5.
a. : to cause the limbs of (a person) to be pulled or distended forcibly especially in torture (as upon a cross or the rack)
b. archaic : to hang by the neck : execute by hanging : hang
6. : to straighten (oneself) especially by rising to full height : draw up (one's body) from a cramped, stooping, or relaxed position : extend (as the arms or the legs) usually in weariness
awoke and stretched himself
7. : to bring to a rigid state of evenness or straightness by applying force at the ends or edges : pull taut
tent … made of caribou skin stretched on a framework — Ivor Jones
8.
a.
(1) : to expand, enlarge, or distend especially by force : extend forcibly in length or width : enlarge in girth or capacity by pressure : draw or pull out
stretch … glass threads or fibers to the thinness necessary — Freda Diamond
stretch a hose into a building
(2) : to expand as if by physical effort
the understanding must be stretched to take in the image of the universe — Francis Bacon
b. : to open wide
tales … to stretch the wind eye of the oldest salts — Marjory S. Douglas
c. : strain
stretched his already thin patience
9. : to cause to reach or continue (as from one point to another or across a space)
stretch a wire between two posts
stretch a curtain across the room
10.
a.
(1) : to amplify or enlarge beyond natural or proper limits : extend often unduly the scope, application, or meaning of
stretches the word … by giving it two entirely separate meanings — N.F.Busch
the general-welfare clause … could easily be stretched to give unlimited powers to the central government — Frank Meyer
the law tacitly permits the rules to be stretched — Norman Birkett
stretched credibility far in reaching the solution — A.C.Ward
(2) : to expand (as by improvisation) to fulfill a larger function
stretch the … appropriation to finance the relief of European children — Will Irwin
stretch one egg for two recipes — Molly L. Bar-David
stretch a budget
b. : to impair the accuracy of : exaggerate in narration
stretch the truth
11. : to cause (a horse) to stand with the front legs stretched forward and the hind legs stretched backward
12. : to extend or attempt to extend (a hit) into one involving one or more extra bases usually by fast or daring running
stretch a single into a double
cut down while trying to stretch the hit
intransitive verb
1. : to press onward eagerly : proceed rapidly or energetically
stretch onward in thy fleet career — Sir Walter Scott
2. obsolete : to possess the capacity, force, or power to stand or endure strain
so far as my coin would stretch — Shakespeare
3. obsolete : to possess a specified range of action : have a specified extent of application
makes himself supreme lord … as far as his civil jurisdiction stretches — John Milton
4.
a. : to become extended in length or in breadth or both : have a specified extent in space : be continuous to a certain point or over a certain distance or area : extend , reach , spread
pipeline … will stretch some 24.5 miles — Wall Street Journal
rolling fields stretch westward to the river's edge — American Guide Series: Connecticut
attacks on a front that stretches from the mountains to the sea
b. : to extend over a continuous period of time
their authorship stretched … over a score of years — Leslie Rees
this game … seems to stretch back to time immemorial — Geoffrey Boumphrey
in the years which stretch ahead — Harold Wincott
5. : to become extended or bear extension without breaking — used especially of elastic or ductile substances
rubber stretchs easily
6.
a. : to extend oneself, one's body, or one's limbs
he awoke, yawned, and stretched
b. : to lie down at full length
stretched on the ground and took a nap
between chores you stretched by the fire — Mary Austin
7. : to strain the truth : exaggerate
8. : to sail by the wind usually under all sail
9. : to exert oneself vigorously especially in rowing
10. : to stall for time (as by slowing the tempo of action) to enable a radio or television program to finish on schedule
•
- stretch a point
- stretch one's legs
II. noun
( -es )
1.
a. archaic : an act held to exceed the scope of authority, a commission, law, justice, propriety, or principle
the unwarrantable stretch … which that house made in their last sitting — Thomas Paine
b. : an exercise (as of power, prerogative, or the law) held to be unwarranted
c. archaic : an instance of stretching the truth : an exaggerated statement
d. : an exercise of something (as the imagination or understanding) beyond ordinary or normal limits
it was a stretch of his patience to hear himself addressed on a family matter — George Meredith
not even by the longest stretch of the imagination can the sensitive listener be persuaded — Warwick Braithwaite
e. : an often undue extension of the scope or application of something
a stretch of language
2. : the extent to which something may be stretched : extreme reach
defy the utmost stretch of your malice — Samuel Richardson
one end is held at full stretch — Francis Yeats-Brown
3. : the act of stretching or the state of being stretched: as
a. : the action of physically extending, expanding, or dilating something
fixation of a muscle in stretch — C.R.Houck
b.
(1) : the action of stretching the body or limbs (as in waking up or preparing to rest)
that first comfortable stretch on the sand — Read Magazine
(2) : the action of a baseball pitcher in fully extending himself (as by raising both arms with hands together over his head) before his windup and pitch
c. : a state of tension : the condition of being drawn taut
the string … is kept at its stretch by means of a stiff piece of stick — Daniel Johnson
keeping the thongs still upon the stretch — George Anson
4.
a. : an extent in length : a continuous line, length, or distance : a continuous portion of something reckoned in length (as a journey, road, or river)
a long stretch of the pipeline — Hardiman Scott
killed all fish life in a stretch of creek — Bill Wolf
suspended by … nothing except a stretch of stiff wire — P.E.Deutschman
a particular stretch of speech — Bruce Pattison
stretches of narrative
b. : a continuous surface or expanse (as of land or water)
stretches of woodland dotted with lakes — American Guide Series: Maine
a tropical stretch of country in the south of India — Aubrey Menen
5.
a. : a single prolonged period of time characterized by an activity or condition without intermission or interruption : an unbroken continuance of an activity or condition for a period of time
he believed in regular stretches of work — Osbert Sitwell
go on typing for eighteen hours at a stretch — Aldous Huxley
pause … for unbearable long stretches — J.F.Wharton
b. : a continuous space, expanse, or period
sustain unity of character over a stretch of time — Roger Manvell
these notes were taken over a stretch of years — A.C.Ballard
c. : a run on one tack in sailing
d. archaic : a continuous journey or march
6.
a. : an exertion of mental or physical powers : a state characterized by a straining of mind or body to the utmost
keep the mind athletic and the spirit on the stretch — R.P.Blackmur
keep his mental faculties at the stretch — J.N.Hall
b. : a strain or exhausting effort of mind
7. : a walk to relieve the fatigue of prolonged sitting
8.
a. : a sentence or term of imprisonment
serving a ten-year stretch for counterfeiting — Bennett Cerf
land a man in prison for quite a stretch — F.J.Warburg
b. : a period of service (as in the armed forces)
did a short stretch in the infantry — Anthony Leviero
during his stretch with a southern newspaper
9. : the outward run of a mule carriage away from the rollers in spinning
10.
a. : either of the straight sides of a racecoarse
a half-mile track with its shorter stretches — Jeremiah Tax
especially : homestretch 1
in the stretch the jockey looked back
— see backstretch
b. : the final or concluding stage (as in a baseball pennant drive or an election campaign)
11.
a. : the capacity for being stretched : elasticity
no loss of stretch … or adhesive qualities — Lancet
has a three-inch stretch to the yard — New Yorker
b. : liability to increase in size as a result of tension or moisture
knit fabrics have considerable stretch
III. adjective
: characterized by a capacity to stretch : elastic
stretch hosiery
stretch nylon
IV. adjective
: longer than the standard size
a stretch car