outstretching

verb

present participle of outstretch
1
as in extending
to arrange the parts of (something) over a wider area the dog had outstretched his legs and was lying across the width of the doorway

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in lengthening
to make longer having outstretched our lunch break beyond all reason, we reluctantly headed back to work

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for outstretching
  1. extending
  2. lengthening
  3. expanding
  4. stretching
  5. opening
  6. increasing
  7. unfolding
Verb
  • The Oakwood and Flowery Branch police departments will help make immigration arrests, extending the reach of federal immigration enforcement inside Hall County, one of Georgia’s largest immigrant enclaves.
    — Lautaro Grinspan, AJC.com, 25 July 2026
  • Italian art critic and curator Cloe Piccoli has been selected as the new artistic director of Milan’s miart fair for a term extending from 2027–29.
    — News Desk, Artforum, 24 July 2026
Definition of extending
Verb
  • The Clinique High Impact Mascara is a volumizing and lengthening formula that separates the lashes for a dramatic, bold finish.
    — Jessie Quinn, PEOPLE, 22 July 2026
  • The ultimate test for whether Dryad’s system or Seneca’s drones can nip fires in the bud will come if fire agencies deploy them during the lengthening wildfire season.
    — Jeremy Hsu, ArsTechnica, 20 July 2026
Definition of lengthening
Verb
  • The stores may keep expanding, franchisees may continue earning attractive returns, and debt may come down faster than expected.
    — Jim Osman, Forbes.com, 21 July 2026
  • The adviser told me that, even without drastically expanding the budget or upending the financial markets, Burnham could borrow a bit more to finance public-infrastructure investments and channel money to depressed regions.
    — John Cassidy, New Yorker, 20 July 2026
Definition of expanding
Verb
  • That could mean walking for two to five minutes every 30 to 60 minutes, taking calls while standing or pacing, using stairs, stretching, or doing a few bodyweight movements between meetings.
    — Jakob Roze, Health, 23 July 2026
  • The metropolitan area was instead placed in parts of three districts, with Cohen’s reshaped district stretching a couple hundred miles eastward before reaching north toward the Nashville suburbs.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 23 July 2026
Definition of stretching
Verb
  • The date circulating is September 25, 2026, with early access opening September 18 for Ultimate Edition buyers and EA Play subscribers.
    — Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
  • Sharing money with a partner can simplify household bills and savings goals, but opening a joint bank account or joint credit card also means sharing financial responsibility.
    — Ashley Lynch July 22, Charlotte Observer, 22 July 2026
Definition of opening
Verb
  • Too fearful of discrimination to go to hospitals for antiretroviral drugs, many transgender people have stopped taking them — significantly increasing their risk of transmission.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 23 July 2026
  • OpenAI disclosed the incident in a blog post on Tuesday, a stunning announcement that is certain to set off alarm bells across the industry about the increasing power of AI models and the risk of them going rogue.
    — Andrew Nusca, Fortune, 22 July 2026
Definition of increasing
Verb
  • But all in all, at about the same number of minutes as Nolan’s film, the linearly unfolding TV version fits in a stunning amount from Homer’s 24-book epic.
    — Elaina Patton, IndieWire, 24 July 2026
  • Their collaboration lasted eight years, unfolding at a breakneck pace.
    — Olivier Bouchara, Vanity Fair, 24 July 2026
Definition of unfolding
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

outstretches
outstretching
outstrip
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Outstretching.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/outstretching. Accessed 27 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of parochial

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

Every Letter Is Silent, Sometimes: A-Z List of Examples
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 24

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
chain-question-mark
Missing Link Quiz July 2026 Five seconds to figure out the word that fits bot...
See All