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📕 rednote ID(小红书号)：3881567312

Span Meaning: Duration & Distance with Examples (2 meaning)

Meaning 1：duration (span)

span 🔊

/spæn/

The length of time that something continues, from its beginning to its end.

Timeline diagram showing span of time from start to end

duration 🔊

➕

/djʊˈreɪʃən/

The length of time that something lasts or continues from beginning to end.

📁 Category：Time & Dates 🔖 Level：Intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From Old English 'spann', meaning the distance between the thumb and little finger, used as a unit of measure.

💡 Mnemonic

Imagine stretching your hand to measure a gap—the span from thumb to pinky equals the full length or duration of something.

📖 Example

Smartphones have significantly shortened our average span of attention, making us impatient with longer tasks. 🔊 Smartphones have significantly shortened our average span of attention, making us impatient with longer tasks.

🔗 Collocations

attention span – The length of time one can focus on a single activity

life span – The duration of an organism's or object's existence

time span – A specific period between two points

🔄 Synonyms

period (n.) – A length or portion of time

duration (n.) – The time during which something continues

stretch (n.) – A continuous period of time

🚫 Antonyms

instant (n.) – An extremely short moment

📖 Cultural Story

Span originally referred to the distance from the tip of the thumb to the tip of the little finger in a spread hand, an ancient measurement used across many cultures. It later generalized to any measure of time or space.

Meaning 2：distance across (span)

span 🔊

/spæn/

The full distance from one end to the other of something, especially across a gap or between two supports.

Suspension bridge illustrating span distance between towers

distance across 🔊

➕

/ˈdɪstəns əˈkrɒs/

The full length or extent from one side to the other, especially across an open space or between two supports.

📁 Category：Buildings & Places 🔖 Level：Intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Example

Tourists always marvel at the impressive span of the bridge, which seems to reach from one mountain to the next. 🔊 Tourists always marvel at the impressive span of the bridge, which seems to reach from one mountain to the next.

🔗 Collocations

bridge span – The distance between two supports of a bridge

wing span – The distance from one wing tip to the other of a bird or aircraft

wide span – A large physical distance across

🔄 Synonyms

extent (n.) – The area covered by something; range

reach (n.) – The distance one can stretch or cover

width (n.) – The measurement from side to side

🚫 Antonyms

narrowness (n.) – The state of being limited in width