SG Heritage Dictionary

Word of the Day: Catachrestical

Stretch [Noun] Webster's Dictionary 1828

1. Extension in length or in breadth; reach; as a great stretch of wings.

2. Effort; struggle; strain.

3. Those put lawful authority upon the stretch to the abuse of power, under color of prerogative.

4. Force of body; straining.

5. By stretch of arms the distant shore to gain.

6. Utmost extent of meaning.

7. Quotations, in their utmost stretch can signify no more than that Luther lay under severe agonies of mind.

8. Utmost reach of power.

9. This is the utmost stretch that nature can.

10. In sailing, a tack; the reach or extent of progress on one tack.

11. Course; direction; as the stretch of seams of coal.

Stretch [Verb intransitive] Webster's Dictionary 1828

1. To be extended; to be drawn out in length or in breadth, or both. A wet hempen cord or cloth contracts; in drying, it stretches.

2. To be extended; to spread; as, a lake stretches over a hundred miles of earth. Lake Erie stretches from Niagara nearly to Huron. Hence,

3. To stretch to, is to reach.

4. To be extended or to bear extension without breaking, as elastic substances.

5. The inner membrane--because it would stretch and yield, remained unbroken.

6. To sally beyond the truth; to exaggerate. A man who is apt to stretch has less credit than others.

7. In navigation, to sail; to direct a course. It is often understood to signify to sail under a great spread of canvas close hauled. In this it differs from stand, which implies no press of sail. We were standing to the east, when we saw a ship stretching to the southward.

8. To make violent efforts in running.

Stretch [Verb transitive] Webster's Dictionary 1828

1. To draw out to greater length; to extend in a line; as, to stretch a cord or a rope.

2. To extend in breadth; as, to stretch cloth.

3. To spread; to expand; as, to stretch the wings.

4. To reach; to extend.

5. STRETCH thine hand to the poor.

6. To spread; to display; as, to stretch forth the heavens.

7. To draw or pull out in length; to strain; as, to stretch a tendon or muscle.

8. To make tense; to strain.

9. So the stretchd cord the shackled dancer tries.

10. To extend mentally; as, to stretch the mind or thoughts.

11. To exaggerate; to extend too far; as, to stretch the truth; to stretch ones credit.

Stretch [Noun] Webster's Dictionary 1913

1. Act of stretching, or state of being stretched; reach; effort; struggle; strain; as, a stretch of the limbs; a stretch of the imagination.

2. A continuous line or surface; a continuous space of time; as, grassy stretches of land.

3. The extent to which anything may be stretched.

4. The reach or extent of a vessel's progress on one tack; a tack or board.

5. Course; direction; as, the stretch of seams of coal.

Stretch [Verb intransitive] Webster's Dictionary 1913

1. To be extended; to be drawn out in length or in breadth, or both; to spread; to reach; as, the iron road stretches across the continent; the lake stretches over fifty square miles.

2. To extend or spread one's self, or one's limbs; as, the lazy man yawns and stretches.

3. To be extended, or to bear extension, without breaking, as elastic or ductile substances.

4. To strain the truth; to exaggerate; as, a man apt to stretch in his report of facts.

5. To sail by the wind under press of canvas; as, the ship stretched to the eastward.

Stretch [Verb transitive] Webster's Dictionary 1913

1. To reach out; to extend; to put forth.

2. To draw out to the full length; to cause to extend in a straight line; as, to stretch a cord or rope.

3. To cause to extend in breadth; to spread; to expand; as, to stretch cloth; to stretch the wings.

4. To make tense; to tighten; to distend forcibly.

5. To draw or pull out to greater length; to strain; as, to stretch a tendon or muscle.

6. To exaggerate; to extend too far; as, to stretch the truth; to stretch one's credit.

Stretched [Participle passive] Webster's Dictionary 1828

Drawn out in length; extended; exerted to the utmost.

Stretched [Imperfect tense and past participle] Webster's Dictionary 1913

of Stretch

Stretcher [Noun] Webster's Dictionary 1828

1. He or that which stretches.

2. A term in bricklaying.

3. A piece of timber in building.

4. A narrow piece of plank placed across a boat for the rowers to set their feet against.

Stretcher [Noun] Webster's Dictionary 1913

1. One who, or that which, stretches.

2. A brick or stone laid with its longer dimension in the line of direction of the wall.

3. A piece of timber used in building.

4. A narrow crosspiece of the bottom of a boat against which a rower braces his feet.

5. A crosspiece placed between the sides of a boat to keep them apart when hoisted up and griped.

6. A litter, or frame, for carrying disabled, wounded, or dead persons.

7. An overstretching of the truth; a lie.

8. One of the rods in an umbrella, attached at one end to one of the ribs, and at the other to the tube sliding upon the handle.

9. An instrument for stretching boots or gloves.

10. The frame upon which canvas is stretched for a painting.

Stretching [Participle present tense] Webster's Dictionary 1828

Drawing out in length; extending; spreading; exerting force.

Stretching Webster's Dictionary 1913

a. & n. from Stretch, v.

Stretching [Present participle and verbal noun] Webster's Dictionary 1913

of Stretch

Space Roget’s Thesaurus §180

N. space, extension, extent, superficial extent, expanse, stretch, hyperspace, room, scope, range, field, way, expansion, compass, sweep, swing, spread, dimension, length, distance, size, volume, hypervolume, latitude, play, leeway, purchase, tolerance, room for maneuver, spare room, elbow room, house room, stowage, roomage, margin, opening, sphere, arena, open space, free space, void, waste, wildness, wilderness, moor, moorland, campagna, abyss, unlimited space, infinity, world, ubiquity, length and breadth of the land, proportions, acreage, acres, acres and perches, roods and perches, hectares, square miles, square inches, square yards, square centimeters, square meters, yards (clothing) &c, ares, arpents

Adj. spacious, roomy, extensive, expansive, capacious, ample, widespread, vast, world-wide, uncircumscribed, boundless, shoreless, trackless, pathless, extended

Adv. extensively, wherever, everywhere, far and near, far and wide, right and left, all over, all the world over, throughout the world, throughout the length and breadth of the land, under the sun, in every quarter, in all quarters, in all lands, here there and everywhere, from pole to pole, from china to peru, from indus to the pole, from dan to beersheba, from end to end, on the face of the earth, in the wide world, from all points of the compass, to the four winds, to the uttermost parts of the earth

Expansion Roget’s Thesaurus §194

N. expansion, increase of size, enlargement, extension, augmentation, amplification, ampliation, aggrandizement, spread, increment, growth, development, pullulation, swell, dilation, rarefaction, turgescence, turgidness, turgidity, dispansion|, obesity, hydrocephalus, hydrophthalmus, dropsy, tumefaction, intumescence, swelling, tumor, diastole, distension, puffing, puffiness, inflation, pandiculation, dilatability, expansibility, germination, growth, upgrowth, accretion, budding, gemmation, overgrowth, overdistension, hypertrophy, tympany, bulb, plumper, superiority of size, big bang, hubble constant

V. become larger &c. (large ), expand, widen, enlarge, extend, grow, increase, incrassate, swell, gather, fill out, deploy, take open order, dilate, stretch, distend, spread, mantle, wax, grow up, spring up, bud, bourgeon, shoot, sprout, germinate, put forth, vegetate, pullulate, open, burst forth, gain flesh, gather flesh, outgrow, spread like wildfire, overrun, be larger than, surpass, render larger &c. (large ), expand, spread, extend, aggrandize, distend, develop, amplify, spread out, widen, magnify, rarefy, inflate, puff, blow up, stuff, pad, cram, exaggerate, fatten

Adj. expanded, larger &c. (large ), swollen, expansive, wide open, wide spread, flabelliform, overgrown, exaggerated, bloated, fat, turgid, tumid, hypertrophied, dropsical, pot bellied, swag bellied|, edematous, oedematous, obese, puffy, pursy, blowzy, bigswoln, distended, patulous, bulbous, full blown, full grown, full formed, big, abdominous, enchymatous, rhipidate, tumefacient, tumefying

Length Roget’s Thesaurus §200

N. length, longitude, span, mileage, distance, # line, bar, rule, stripe, streak, spoke, radius, lengthening, prolongation, production, protraction, tension, tensure, extension, line, nail, inch, hand, palm, foot, cubit, yard, ell, fathom, rood, pole, furlong, mile, league, chain, link, arpent, handbreadth, jornada, kos, vara, astronomical unit, au, light-year, parsec, nanometer, nm, micron, micrometer, millimicron, millimeter, mm, centimeter, cm, meter, kilometer, km, pedometer, perambulator, scale

V. be long, stretch out, sprawl, extend to, reach to, stretch to, make a long arm, "drag its slow length along." render long, lengthen, extend, elongate, stretch, prolong, produce, protract, let out, draw out, spin out|, drawl, enfilade, look along, view in perspective, distend (expand) 194

Adj. long, longsome, lengthy, wiredrawn, outstretched, lengthened, sesquipedalian, interminable, no end of, macrocolous, linear, lineal, longitudinal, oblong, as long as my arm, as long as today and tomorrow, unshortened &c. (shorten )

Adv. lengthwise, at length, longitudinally, endlong, along, tandem, in a line, in perspective, from end to end, from stem to stern, from head to foot, from the crown of the head to the sole of the foot, from top to toe, fore and aft

Elasticity Roget’s Thesaurus §325

N. elasticity, springiness, spring, resilience, # renitency, buoyancy, rubber, india(n) rubber, latex, caoutchouc, whalebone, gum elastic, baleen, natural rubber, neoprene, synthetic rubber, buna-s, plastic, flexibility, young's modulus

V. stretch, flex, extend, distend, be elastic, bounce, spring back

Adj. elastic, flexible, tensile, spring, resilient, renitent, buoyant, ductile, stretchable, extendable

Phr. the stress is proportional to the strain

Exaggeration Roget’s Thesaurus §549

N. exaggeration, expansion, hyperbole, stretch, strain, coloring, high coloring, caricature, caricatura, extravagance, baron munchausen, men in buckram, yarn, fringe, embroidery, traveler's tale, fish story, gooseberry* storm in a teacup, much ado about nothing, puff, puffery, rant, figure of speech, facon de parler, stretch of fancy, stretch of the imagination, flight of fancy, false coloring, aggravation

V. exaggerate, magnify, pile up, aggravate, amplify, overestimate, hyperbolize, overcharge, overstate, overdraw, overlay, overshoot the mark, overpraise, make over much, over the most of, strain, strain over a point, stretch, stretch a point, go great lengths, spin a long yarn, draw with a longbow, shoot with a longbow, deal in the marvelous, out-herod herod, run riot, talk at random, heighten, overcolor, color highly, color too highly, broder, flourish, color, puff

Adj. exaggerated, overwrought, bombastic, hyperbolical, on stilts, fabulous, extravagant, preposterous, egregious, outre, highflying

Adv. hyperbolically

Phr. excitabat enim fluctus in simpulo, 1, natural means

Exertion Roget’s Thesaurus §686

N. exertion, effort, strain, tug, pull, stress, throw, stretch, struggle, spell, spurt, spirt, stroke of work, stitch of work, "a strong pull a long pull and a pull all together", dead lift, heft, gymnastics, exercise, exercitation, wear and tear, ado, toil and trouble, uphill work, hard work, warm work, harvest time, labor, work, toil, travail, manual labor, sweat of one's brow, swink, drudgery, slavery, fagging, hammering, limae labor, industry, industriousness, operoseness, operosity, trouble, pains, duty, resolution, energy

V. exert oneself, exert one's energies, tax one's energies, use exertion, labor, work, toil, moil, sweat, fag, drudge, slave, drag a lengthened chain, wade through, strive, stretch a long arm, pull, tug, ply, ply the oar, tug at the oar, do the work, take the laboring oar bestir oneself (be active) 682, take trouble, trouble oneself, work hard, rough it, put forth one's strength, put forth a strong arm, fall to work, bend the bow, buckle to, set one's shoulder to the wheel, work like a horse, work like a cart horse, work like a galley slave, work like a coal heaver, labor day and night, work day and night, redouble one's efforts, do double duty, work double hours, work double tides, sit up, burn the candle at both ends, stick to, work one's way, fight one's way, lay about one, hammer at, take pains, do one's best, do one's level best, do one's utmost, give one hundred percent, do the best one can, do all one can, do all in one's power, do as much as in one lies, do what lies in one's power, use one's best endeavor, use one's utmost endeavor, try one's best, try one's utmost, play one's best card, put one's best leg foremost, put one's right leg foremost, have one's whole soul in his work, put all one's strength into, strain every nerve, spare no efforts, spare no pains, go all lengths, go through fire and water, move heaven and earth, leave no stone unturned

Adj. laboring, laborious, operose, elaborate, strained, toilsome, troublesome, wearisome, uphill, herculean, gymnastic, palestric, hard-working, painstaking, strenuous, energetic, hard at work, on the stretch

Adv. laboriously, lustily, pugnis et calcibus, with might and main, with all one's might, with a strong hand, with a sledge hammer, with much ado, to the best of one's abilities, totis viribus, vi et armis, manibus pedibusque, tooth and nail, unguibus et rostro, hammer and tongs, heart and soul, through thick and thin, by the sweat of one's brow, suo marte

Phr. aide-toi le ciel t'aidera, "and still be doing, never done", buen principio la mitad es hecha, cosa ben fatta e' fatta due volie, "it is better to wear out than to rust out", labor omnia vincit "labor, wide as the earth, has its summit in heaven", le travail du corps delivre des peines de l'esprit, manu forti, ora et labora

Undueness Roget’s Thesaurus §925

N. undueness, malum # prohibitum, impropriety, illegality, falseness, emptiness of title, invalidity of title, illegitimacy, loss of right, disfranchisement, forfeiture, usurpation, tort, violation, breach, encroachment, presumption, assumption, seizure, stretch, exaction, imposition, lion's share, usurper, pretender

V. be undue, not be due, infringe, encroach, trench on, exact, arrogate, arrogate to oneself, give an inch and take an ell, stretch a point, strain a point, usurp, violate, do violence to, disfranchise, disentitle, disqualify, invalidate, relax, misbehave, misbecome

Adj. undue, unlawful, unconstitutional, illicit, unauthorized, unwarranted, disallowed, unallowed, unsanctioned, unjustified, unentitled, disentitled, unqualified, disqualified, unprivileged, unchartered, illegitimate, bastard, spurious, supposititious, false, usurped, tortious, undeserved, unmerited, unearned, unfulfilled, forfeited, disfranchised, improper, unmeet, unfit, unbefitting, unseemly, unbecoming, misbecoming, seemless, contra bonos mores, not the thing, out of the question, not to be thought of, preposterous, pretentious, would-be

Phr. filius nullius

King James Bible KJV Bible

Berean Standard Bible BSB Bible

148 KJV and 86 BSB verses contain “stretch” — showing the first 20. Show all 164 verses (searchable)

Genesis 22:10

And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.

Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son.

Genesis 48:14

And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands wittingly; for Manasseh was the firstborn.

But Israel stretched out his right hand and put it on the head of Ephraim, the younger; and crossing his hands, he put his left on Manasseh’s head, although Manasseh was the firstborn.

Exodus 3:20

And I will stretch out my hand, and smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you go.

So I will stretch out My hand and strike the Egyptians with all the wonders I will perform among them. And after that, he will release you.

Exodus 4:4

And the LORD said unto Moses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail. And he put forth his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand:

“Stretch out your hand and grab it by the tail,” the LORD said to Moses, who reached out his hand and caught the snake, and it turned back into a staff in his hand.

Exodus 6:6

Wherefore say unto the children of Israel, I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with a stretched out arm, and with great judgments:

Therefore tell the Israelites: ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians and deliver you from their bondage. I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment.

Exodus 7:5

And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch forth mine hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them.

And the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out My hand against Egypt and bring the Israelites out from among them.”

Exodus 7:19

And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and stretch out thine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that they may become blood; and that there may be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone.

And the LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt—over their rivers and canals and ponds and reservoirs—that they may become blood.’ There will be blood throughout the land of Egypt, even in the vessels of wood and stone.”

Exodus 8:5

And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch forth thine hand with thy rod over the streams, over the rivers, and over the ponds, and cause frogs to come up upon the land of Egypt.

And the LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers and canals and ponds, and cause the frogs to come up onto the land of Egypt.’”

Exodus 8:6

And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt; and the frogs came up, and covered the land of Egypt.

So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt.

Exodus 8:16

And the LORD said unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt.

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the earth, that it may turn into swarms of gnats throughout the land of Egypt.’”

Exodus 8:17

And they did so; for Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and smote the dust of the earth, and it became lice in man, and in beast; all the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt.

This they did, and when Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff and struck the dust of the earth, gnats came upon man and beast. All the dust of the earth turned into gnats throughout the land of Egypt.

Exodus 9:15

For now I will stretch out my hand, that I may smite thee and thy people with pestilence; and thou shalt be cut off from the earth.

For by this time I could have stretched out My hand and struck you and your people with a plague to wipe you off the earth.

Exodus 9:22

And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch forth thine hand toward heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man, and upon beast, and upon every herb of the field, throughout the land of Egypt.

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, so that hail may fall on all the land of Egypt—on man and beast and every plant of the field throughout the land of Egypt.”

Exodus 9:23

And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt.

So Moses stretched out his staff toward heaven, and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and lightning struck the earth. So the LORD rained down hail upon the land of Egypt.

Exodus 10:12

And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come up upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land, even all that the hail hath left.

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt, so that the locusts may swarm over it and devour every plant in the land—everything that the hail has left behind.”

Exodus 10:13

And Moses stretched forth his rod over the land of Egypt, and the LORD brought an east wind upon the land all that day, and all that night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts.

So Moses stretched out his staff over the land of Egypt, and throughout that day and night the LORD sent an east wind across the land. By morning the east wind had brought the locusts.

Exodus 10:21

And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, so that darkness may spread over the land of Egypt—a palpable darkness.”

Exodus 10:22

And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days:

So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and total darkness covered all the land of Egypt for three days.

Exodus 14:16

But lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.

And as for you, lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.

Exodus 14:21

And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the LORD caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.

Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the LORD drove back the sea with a strong east wind that turned it into dry land. So the waters were divided,