as in measured
to find out the size, extent, or amount of
tried to span the distance between the two trees by eye alone
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of spanned
His research interests spanned the fields of cognitive science, computer science, public administration, management, and political science.
—
Big Think, 4 Nov. 2025
Born in Lincoln, Nebraska, and raised in Wyoming, Cheney’s career spanned decades of public service.
—Shane Croucher, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025
Foster, whose screen career has spanned more than half a century, is a two-time Academy Award winner for best actress (The Accused and The Silence of the Lambs) and also has a further three nominations, most recently for her performance in the 2023 film Nyad.
—Abid Rahman, HollywoodReporter, 4 Nov. 2025
Kane’s career has spanned five decades.
—Alex Ritman, Variety, 4 Nov. 2025
His nonpayment, which spanned more than a year at the time of these interviews, felt like another trauma.
—Victoria Bekiempis, Rolling Stone, 3 Nov. 2025
With Laura Dern’s help, the two began walking every day and eventually recorded their intimate conversations, which spanned subjects from Ladd’s divorce from Bruce Dern to her sister’s death.
—Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 3 Nov. 2025
Participants in the group hailed from The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens, and spanned education levels and careers.
—Halle Troadec, ABC News, 31 Oct. 2025
The number has skyrocketed so astronomically because, unlike in the previous record-setting shutdown that spanned from 2018 to 2019, Democrats have blocked the Pentagon-specific appropriations bill that would allow some 2 million military members to be paid.
—Tiana Lowe Doescher, The Washington Examiner, 31 Oct. 2025
Big Think, 4 Nov. 2025
Born in Lincoln, Nebraska, and raised in Wyoming, Cheney’s career spanned decades of public service.
—Shane Croucher, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025
Foster, whose screen career has spanned more than half a century, is a two-time Academy Award winner for best actress (The Accused and The Silence of the Lambs) and also has a further three nominations, most recently for her performance in the 2023 film Nyad.
—Abid Rahman, HollywoodReporter, 4 Nov. 2025
Kane’s career has spanned five decades.
—Alex Ritman, Variety, 4 Nov. 2025
His nonpayment, which spanned more than a year at the time of these interviews, felt like another trauma.
—Victoria Bekiempis, Rolling Stone, 3 Nov. 2025
With Laura Dern’s help, the two began walking every day and eventually recorded their intimate conversations, which spanned subjects from Ladd’s divorce from Bruce Dern to her sister’s death.
—Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 3 Nov. 2025
Participants in the group hailed from The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens, and spanned education levels and careers.
—Halle Troadec, ABC News, 31 Oct. 2025
The number has skyrocketed so astronomically because, unlike in the previous record-setting shutdown that spanned from 2018 to 2019, Democrats have blocked the Pentagon-specific appropriations bill that would allow some 2 million military members to be paid.
—Tiana Lowe Doescher, The Washington Examiner, 31 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spanned
Verb
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For all the sites, CNN measured the additional square footage of buildings by year since 2020, and analyzed the specific facilities seen in satellite imagery to determine their purpose.—
Tamara Qiblawi,
CNN Money,
7 Nov. 2025
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Prices as measured by the Consumer Price Index overall have risen every month since April.—
Steve Kopack,
NBC news,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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In other words, male respectability was gauged by how successfully women’s bodies were regulated.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
30 Oct. 2025
-
Having escaped disaster and gauged the full extent of American self-deterrence, Putin began putting pressure on Ukraine’s neighbors and suppliers.—
Robert Kagan,
The Atlantic,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Spanned.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spanned. Accessed 8 Nov. 2025.
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