Definitions

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • a. & n. from stretch, v.
  • (Masonry) a course or series of stretchers. See Stretcher, 2.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A form of physical exercise in which a specific skeletal muscle (or muscle group) is deliberately elongated to its fullest length in order to improve the muscle's felt elasticity and reaffirm comfortable muscle tone.
  • verb Present participle of stretch.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun exercise designed to extend the limbs and muscles to their full extent
  • noun act of expanding by lengthening or widening

Etymologies

Sorry, no etymologies found.

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word stretching.

Examples

  • But come, Mr Lennard, aren't you what they call stretching the probabilities a little when you say that the light of some of them will never get here, as far as we're concerned?

    The World Peril of 1910 George Chetwynd Griffith 1881

  • Polybius was ignorant of the real shape of Italy, which he describes as stretching from east to west; a mistake which seems to have originated with him, and was copied by Strabo.

    A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels - Volume 18 Historical Sketch of the Progress of Discovery, Navigation, and Commerce, from the Earliest Records to the Beginning of the Nineteenth Century, By William Stevenson William Stevenson 1784

  • For Citibank, their practice for years was what they called stretching the envelope.

    Democracy Now! 2009

  • For Citibank, their practice for years was what they called stretching the envelope.

    Democracy Now! 2009

  • Instead, Denève plunged head in stretching out every last half-baked idea beyond the breaking point and adding what seemed like hours to a reasonably short program.

    On Balance 2009

  • The agreement runs through the 2010-11 season and, while Stern has shown interest in stretching the waiting period to two years, NBA Players Association chief Billy Hunter has expressed resistance to backing off the one-year time frame.

    One-and-done players concern new NCAA president 2010

  • Modern thinking — you know, as opposed to that old pre-2004 thinking — holds that dynamic stretching is the way to go: moving through stretches without pausing or holding a position, walking forward while grabbing the knee toward the chest, that kind of thing.

    The first sentence I wrote today… ewillett 2009

  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention combed through more than 100 papers looking at stretching studies, they found people who stretched before exercise were no less likely to suffer injuries such as a pulled muscle, which the increased flexibility from stretching is supposed to prevent.

    Experts: Don't stretch before exercising 2010

  • The nation is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity due to its location on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire – a series of fault lines stretching from the Western Hemisphere through Japan and Southeast Asia.

    Indonesian Volcano Mount Merapi Erupts AP 2010

  • The nation is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity due to its location on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire – a series of fault lines stretching from the Western Hemisphere through Japan and Southeast Asia.

    Indonesian Volcano Mount Merapi Erupts AP 2010

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • The Mock Turtle's "Sketching."

    July 18, 2008