extend, v.
(ɛkˈstɛnd)
Also 5 estend.
[ME. extenden, ad. L. extendĕre, f. ex- out + tendĕre to stretch. The form estend is through Fr. estendre.]
I. To stretch out.
1. trans. To stretch forcibly, strain. † a. To stretch or pull out (anything) to its full size; to strain (nerves); to hold or maintain in a stretched condition. Also, to train (a vine); after L. extendere vitem. Obs.
| c 1420 Pallad. on Husb. i. 140 In landes drie and hoote noo vyne extende. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 255 b, He was extended & strayned on y⊇ crosse. 1541 Barnes Wks. (1573) 246/1 Her wrinckles bee extended and stretched out. 1661 Lovell Hist. Anim. & Min. 6 It [Asse's milk] extending the skinn, making it tender and removing wrinkles. 1725 Pope Odyssey v. 438 To reach Phæacia all thy nerves extend. 1794 Rigging & Seamanship I. 83 Quadrilateral sails are extended by yards. |
b. Manège. (See quot. 1727). Esp. pass. and refl. of a horse: to exert itself to the full; to go ‘all out’; so, of a runner, oarsman, etc.; hence gen., to use all one's efforts; to try one's utmost; to be at full stretch.
| 1727 Bailey vol. II, To extend (a Horse) signifies to make him go large. 1753 in Chambers Cycl. Supp. 1856 ‘Stonehenge’ Man. Brit. Sports 332/1 The horse is made to extend himself. 1886 Sat. Rev. 6 Mar. 327/1 Considering..what his [the horse's] stride is when really extended. 1915 Wodehouse Something Fresh v, The Blandings chef had extended himself in honour of the house-party, and had produced a succession of dishes which, in happier days, Mr. Peters would have devoured eagerly. 1921 Baily's Mag. Jan. 3/2 The flying Pharmacie, who has not only won all the eight races in which she has taken part, but has never been really extended for a single stride. 1923 Wodehouse Inimitable Jeeves xiii, He delivered an address of twenty-six minutes by Claude's stop-watch. At a village wedding, mark you! What'll he do when he really extends himself! 1931 Morn. Post 25 Feb. 16/3 Corpus held their place at the Head of the River without being extended. 1955 Times 11 May 5/1 The main interest will be to see how he extends himself on the race-course. 1964 E. Waugh Little Learning v. 137 An indolent, humorous clergyman, who we did not think was extending himself fully in coaching us. |
† c. To strain the capacity of, distend (a vessel, etc.). Also fig. Obs.
| 1481 Caxton Mirr. i. iv. B iij b, Of alle goodes they extende them & discorde fro god. 1533 Elyot Cast. Helthe ii. xxxv. 53 Men and women..muste reade oftentimes lowde..extendyng out the wyndepype. a 1642 Jos. Shute Judgem. & Mercy (1645) 99 No man should extend himself beyond the latitude of his own calling. 1704 Swift Mech. Operat. Spirit Misc. (1711) 299 The Saint felt his Vessel full extended in every Part. c 1720 Prior Turtle & Sparrow 19 Fair swans, extend your dying throats. |
d. intr. for refl. To expand; to become distended.
| 1753 N. Torriano Midwifry 18 Some Authors alledge, that the Womb grows thinner, others that it grows thicker in uterine Gestation, as it extends. |
2. a. In weaker sense: To straighten out, place at full length; to lay out (the body, limbs, etc.) in a horizontal position. † Also intr. for refl.
| c 1386 Chaucer Man of Law's T. 363 Flemer of feendes, out of him and here On which thy lymes feithfully extenden, Me kepe. 1624 Donne Devotions 61 If those pieces were extended and stretched out in Man. a 1729 Congreve Lament. Hecuba in Chalmers X. 276 Hector's Corps extended on a Bier. 1872 Huxley Phys. vii. 174 A limb is flexed, when it is bent; extended, when it is straightened out. 1888 Hatch Hibbert Lect. (1890) iii. 74 When it was said ‘The government shall be upon his shoulder,’ it was meant that Christ should be extended on the cross. |
b. To write out at full length; esp. to transcribe (shorthand notes) in longhand; to expand (graphical contractions). Also, to write out (a legal instrument) in proper form (now chiefly Sc.).
| a 1639 Wotton Reliquiæ (1672) 89 The contracting and extending the lines and sense of others..would appear a thankless office. a 1693 Urquhart Rabelais iii. xxiii, We will take Instrument formally and authentically extended. 1826 J. Wilson Noct. Ambr. Wks. 1855 I. 334 ‘Takin down the conversation in heeroglyphics, and at hame, extendin your notes.’ 1874 in Ripon Ch. Acts Pref. 8 The Surtees Society has always adhered to the plan of ‘extending’ contractions. 1882 Olgivie, To extend a deed, to make a fair copy of a deed on paper, parchment, or the like, for signature; to engross a deed. [Scotch.] |
c. Comm. to extend an invoice, etc.: to calculate and ‘carry out’ the amount of each line contained in it. (Cf. branch III.)
3. a. To stretch, draw (e.g. a cord, a line of troops) in a specified direction, or so as to reach to a certain point. In Practical Geometry, etc.: To open out (a pair of compasses); also absol.
| 1624 Gunter Descr. Crosse-staffe i. vi. 20 Extend the compasses from the diuisor to 1, the same extent shall reach from the diuidend to the quotient. 1697 Dryden Eneid i. 587 Some extend the Wall, some build the Citadel. 1703 Moxon Mech. Exerc. 343 Then removing the string the space of 15 degrees in the Quadrant, and extending it to the Equator on the Cieling. 1709 Steele Tatler No. 55 ¶5 His Troops are extended from Exilles to Mount Genevre. 1724 De Foe Mem. Cavalier (1840) 170 Colonel Sandys..extends himself to the left..and began to form his men. 1794 J. H. Moore Pract. Navig. 64 Extend from radius or 90° to the course 5 points on the line of sines. |
b. refl. and intr. for refl. To stretch or continue for a specified distance; to reach, be continuous, to or towards a certain point of space or time.
| 1481 Caxton Godfrey 73 Thens departeth an arme like a fresshe water, And estendeth it toward the eest. 1514 Barclay Cyt. & Uplondsyshm. (Percy Soc.) 9 An hepe of snowe So hye extendynge our steple is more lowe. 1553 Brende Q. Curtius vii. (1570) 193 So much ground as his campe did conteyne, extendyng in compasse lx. furlonges. 1607 Shakes. Timon ii. ii. 160 To Lacedemon did my Land extend. 1662 J. Graunt Observ. Bills Mortal. (1665) 116 No greater than that unto which the voice of a Preacher of a middling Lungs can easily extend. 1711 Pope Temp. Fame 265 Arches widen, and long iles extend. 1769 De Foe's Tour Gt. Brit. I. 183 The Shore extends itself a great Way into the Sea. 1796–7 Instr. & Reg. Cavalry (1813) 169 The point and division on which the whole are to form will be named; the whole will extend from it. 1845 M. Pattison Ess. (1889) I. 16 Neustria..extended from the Meuse almost to the present southern limits of France. 1872 E. Spaulding in Raymond Statist. Mines & Mining 90 The Blue Lead..extends through the county parallel to the main range. 1886 Manch. Exam. 9 Feb. 5/2 The strike has extended over 22 weeks. |
| fig. 1552 Huloet, Extende to, or be as much worth as his word, suppeto. |
† c. To be directed to an object; to tend. Also, to belong, pertain. Obs.
| a 1533 Ld. Berners Gold. Bk. M. Aurel. (1546) C v, He trauayled..too..serche what extended to the arte of Nygromanycye. 1580 Baret Alv. E 492 To Extend to: to touch a thing, pertineo. 1581 Marbeck Bk. of Notes 49 Anger is no sinne, so that..the ende whether it extendeth be vertuous. 1605 Bacon Adv. Learn. ii. vi. §1 No light of nature extendeth to declare the will and true worship of God. |
4. a. trans. To lengthen, prolong; to continue to a greater distance; to push forward in space.
| 1569 Abp. Parker Corr. (Parker Soc.) 351, I take some heed not to extend my sleeve beyond my arm. 1765 A. Dickson Treat. Agric. (ed. 2) 18 Let the earth be extracted, and plants cannot extend themselves. 1854 Act 17–8 Vict. c. clxxxvi. (title), An Act to enable the Portsmouth Railway Company..to extend their..Line from Godalming to Shalford. |
b. To prolong in duration.
| 1580 Baret Alv. E 492 Is extended to this time. 1605 Shakes. Macb. iii. iv. 57 If much you note him You shall offend him, and extend his Passion; Feed, and regard him not. a 1631 Donne Serm. vii. (1640) 62 If I extend this Sermon, if you extend your Devotion, or your Patience, beyond the ordinary time. 1725 Pope Odyss. iv. 18 To Helen's bed the Gods alone assign Hermione t' extend the regal line. 1796 C. Marshall Garden. xix. (1813) 349 The season may be extended. 1882 Cussans Handbk. Heraldry Introd. 14 It is the labour..of vanity to extend the term of this ideal longevity. |
c. To carry to a further point of completeness.
| 1727 Swift Gulliver iii. iii. 196 This advantage hath enabled them to extend their discoveries much farther. 1832 H. Martineau Life in Wilds ix. 118 Machinery might be extended to the utmost perfection. |
5. a. To spread out in area; to make to cover a certain space; † to open out (something furled up).
| 1675 Evelyn Terra (1676) 148 You may..extend a Tent over it, to keep out Rain. 1730 A. Gordon tr. Maffei's Amphith. 349 An Awning was extended over the Amphitheatre. 1767 Franklin Lett. (1833) 107 Men..carry umbrellas in their hands, which they extend in case of rain. |
b. Metaph. Used in pass. with generalized sense: To possess ‘extension’ or spatial magnitude.
| 1666 [see extended ppl. a. 4]. 1690 Locke Hum. Und. ii. i. (1695) 48 'Tis..as intelligible to say, that a body is extended without parts, as that any thing thinks without being conscious of it. 1717 Prior Alma i. 96 The mind, say they, while you sustain To hold her station in the brain; You grant, at least she is extended. 1759 Johnson Rasselas xlvii, ‘I know not’..‘how to conceive anything without extension; what is extended must have parts’. 1796 Hutton Math. Dict. I. 460/2 It is usual to consider it [a body] as extended only in length, breadth, and thickness. 1862 [see extended ppl. a. 4]. |
c. intr. To cover an area; to stretch out in various directions. Of immaterial things: To have a certain range or scope.
| 1481 Caxton Myrr. iii. xxi. 181 This [heaven] is that gyueth to vs his colour blew, the whiche estendeth aboue thayer. 1559 in Strype Ann. Ref. I. App. x. 28 The parliament, which I knowledge to be of great strengthe in matters whereunto it extendethe. 1597 Daniel Civ. Wares vi. 97 All the purple plains that wide extend. 1605 Bacon Adv. Learn. i. viii. §3 The commandment extendeth more over the wills of men, and not only over their deeds and services. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iii. 514 Some ancient Oak, whose Arms extend In ample Breadth. 1722 De Foe Plague (1884 Rtldg.) 113 These Robberies extended chiefly to Wearing-Cloths. 1729 Butler Serm. Wks. 1874 II. 162 Moral obligations can extend no further than to natural possibilities. 1841 Lane Arab. Nts. I. 88 Thou art he whose goodness extendeth to all men. 1876 J. H. Newman Hist. Sk. I. i. ii. 70 Its commerce extended from China to Europe. |
6. a. trans. To widen, enlarge (boundaries); to enlarge the area of. Also intr. for refl.
| 1580 Baret Alv. E 492 To extend the bounds. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 177 My Song to flow'ry Gardens might extend. 1869 Farrar Fam. Speech ii. 40 First westward and northward..the Aryans extended. 1876 E. Jenkins Blot on Queen's Head 3 The way in which this inn had gone on extending. |
b. To widen the range, scope, area of application of (a law, operation, dominion, state of things, etc.); to enlarge the scope or meaning of (a word).
| 1584 R. Scot Discov. Witchcr. x. i. 177 Onen..is extended to the interpretation of dreames. 1594 Hooker Eccl. Pol. i. viii. (1611) 21 Yet do we not so far extend the law of reason. 1606 Shakes. Ant. & Cl. v. ii. 62 You do extend These thoughts of horror further than you shall Finde cause in Cæsar. 1655–60 Stanley Hist. Philos. (1701) 40/1 Crœsus wondered to see their Plenty extended to the very Beasts. 1709 Steele & Addison Tatler No. 103 ¶13 To strengthen and extend his Sight by a Glass. 1751 Jortin Serm. (1771) IV. xv. 302 We are taught to extend our prayers beyond our own private necessities. 1853 O. Gordon in Report, etc. on Recomm. Oxf. Univ. Comm. 196, I have nothing to say about the fourth mode suggested of extending the University. 1854 H. Spencer Genesis of Science Ess. (1858) 162 The invention of the barometer enabled men to extend the principles of mechanics to the atmosphere. |
| refl. 1798 Ferriar Illustr. Sterne i. 11 The fashion extended itself among the courtiers. 1855 Brewster Newton II. xix. 207 The reputation of Newton had been gradually extending itself on the continent. |
† c. refl. To give oneself space; to dilate, enlarge on a subject. Obs.
| a 1635 Naunton Fragm. Reg. (Arb.) 41, I forbear to extend myself in any further relation upon this subject. 1655 Earl of Orrery Parthen. (1676) 242 He extended himself eloquently and largely upon this subject. |
† 7. To magnify in representation; to exaggerate. Obs.
| 1509 Hawes Past. Pleas. xxix. (Percy Soc.) 143, I can nothing extende the goodlines Of her temple. 1611 Shakes. Cymb. i. i. 25, Second Gent. You speake him farre. First Gent. I do extend him (Sir) within himselfe. |
II. To stretch forth, hold out.
8. To stretch forth (the arm or hand). Cf. 2. Also, to hold out, put forward (a staff, etc.).
| 1601 Shakes. Twel. N. ii. v. 72, I extend my hand to him thus. 1611 Coryat Crudities 87 That they [vines] may the more extend their branches in length. 1697 Dryden Eneid i. 683 See..his old Sire his helpless Hand extend. 1788 Cowper Dog & Water Lily v, With cane extended far. 1809 Roland Fencing 56 It is necessary to parry with the arm a little extended. 1822 M. A. Kelty Osmond I. 51 Extending his hand, he took her's. 1841 Catlin N. Amer. Ind. (1844) II. lviii. 244 The strong arm of the Government could be extended out to protect them. |
9. a. To hold out, accord, grant (kindness, indulgence) to, towards a person; to offer (advice). † Formerly also, to display (malice), inflict (vengeance), issue (a legal process) against, upon.
| 1540–1 Elyot Image Gou. (1544) 59 a, He..extended a more stately facion than purteyned to his degree. 1547 Act 1 Edw. VI, c. 3 §16 Such as are in unfained miserie..to whom charitie ought to be extended. 1561 T. Norton Calvin's Inst. i. 3 He extendeth vengeance vpon the wicked. 1597 J. King On Jonas 256 Since thou hast malice to bestowe, extende it vpon Ahab. 1611 Shakes. Cymb. ii. iii. 65 Towards himselfe..We must extend our notice. 1611 Bible Ps. cix. 12 Let there be none to extend mercy unto him. 1712–4 Pope Rape Lock ii. 11 To all she smiles extends. 1802 M. Edgeworth Moral T. (1816) I. ix. 68 You should extend to me the same..indulgence. 1875 Jowett Plato (ed. 2) III. 687 You..begged that some allowance might be extended to you. |
b. U.S. to extend a call (to a pastorate). Cf. call n. 6 g.
| 1887 Troy Daily Times 5 Nov., Plymouth Church has decided to extend a call to the Rev. Charles A. Berry. |
c. Law. To present (a protest).
| 1889 [see extended 5]. Mod. ‘A captain of a merchant vessel, in case of loss or average, extends his protest. So does a notary when he has to protest a bill of exchange.’ (H. H. Gibbs.) |
III. To value, assess. [Of somewhat obscure origin; perh. derived inversely from extent, and thus etymologically = ‘to ascertain the extent of’; perh. with notion of setting down at length; cf. 2 b, c.]
10. To assess, value; esp. in Law: To value (lands, etc.).
| [1292 Britton iii. vii. §4 Maunderoms al viscounte..qe par chevalers et autres bones gentz..face estendre totes les terres.] c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 202 Now wille kyng R. alle his lond extende, Merschalle & stiward þerfor about dos sende. 1523 Fitzherb. Surv. Prol., It is necessarye to be knowen, howe all these maners..shulde be extended, surueyed..and valued in euery parte. 1602 W. Fulbecke 2nd Pt. Parall. 41 That which was within the bayliwicke..himselfe caused to be extended by parcels, and at the end he put the summe of the value. 1848 Wharton Law Lex. 242/1 Extend, to value the lands, etc., of one bound by a statute, who has forfeited his bond, at such an indifferent rate, as by the yearly rent, the creditor may in time be paid his debt. |
11. a. Law. To take possession of by a writ of extent; to seize upon (land, etc.) in satisfaction for a debt; to levy upon.
| 1585 Abp. Sandys Serm. (1841) 82 Our goods are not spoiled..our lands extended, our bodies imprisoned. 1625 Massinger New Way v. i, When This manor is extended to my use, You'll speak in an humbler key. a 1626 Bacon Max. & Uses Com. Law (1635) 45 The land is to be extended for a yearely value, to satisfie the debt. 1767 Blackstone Comm. II. 331 A use could not be extended by writ of elegit, or other legal process, for the debts of cestuy que use. 1798 Dallas Amer. Law Rep. II. 76 Whether a life estate could be extended. 1818 Cruise Digest (ed. 2) II. 56 If he releases all his right to the land, yet he may extend it afterwards. 1823 in Crabb Technol. Dict. |
b. transf. To seize upon, take possession of, by force.
| 1606 Shakes. Ant. & Cl. i. ii. 105 Labienus..Hath with his Parthian Force Extended Asia. 1610 Tofte Honour's Acad. 31 For where the publique good is extended, not any man there should seeke his owne particular quiet. 1678 Butler Hud. iii. iii. 436 The law..Will soon extend her for your bride. |
† c. intr. with upon: To levy upon. Obs. rare.
| 1564–78 W. Bullein Dial. agst. Pest. (1888) 11, I haue extended vpon aunciente landes in the Countrie for the breach of couenauntes. |
¶ Erron. used for attend.
| 1483 Caxton Gold. Leg. 239/1 Prayeng god..that he wold gyue hym grace that he myght estende to the helthe of his neyghbours. |
Hence exˈtending vbl. n., the action of the vb. extend; also an instance of this. exˈtending ppl. a., that extends; that is expanding, spreading out, or becoming larger.
| 1541 R. Copland Guydon's Quest. Chirurg., The whiche [veins] after the braunches..and the extending by the arme are diuersified. a 1649 Drummond of Hawthornden Hist. Jas. V Wks. (1711) 107 For the amplifying and extending of the Christian religion. 1760 J. Woolman Jrnl. vii. 95 Through the gracious extendings of Divine help. 1812 Sir H. Davy Chem. Philos. 12 Warm with the ardor of an extending and exalted religion. 1887 Pall Mall G. 28 Feb. 1/1 A profitable and extending business in these goods. Mod. Furnisher's Price-list, An extending Dining Table. |