Entry Word: expand

Function: verb

Meaning: 1 to express more fully and in greater detail <an article on the First Ladies that the author later expanded into a book>

Synonyms amplify, develop, elaborate (on), enlarge (on)

Related Words add (to), complement, supplement; discourse, expatiate, ramble, run on

Near Antonyms compress, contract; outline, summarize, sum up

Antonyms abbreviate, abridge, condense, shorten

2 to make greater in size, amount, or number <we had to expand the list of wedding guests several times in order to accommodate all the relatives Mother wouldnʼt dream of excluding> — see increase 1
3 to arrange the parts of (something) over a wider area <a spare leaf for those times when we have to expand the dining table to accommodate extra guests> — see open 3
4 to become greater in extent, volume, amount, or number <water expands when it becomes frozen> — see increase 2