different between span vs mass

English

Etymology 1

From Middle English spanne, from Old English spann, from Proto-Germanic *spann? (“span, handbreadth”). Cognate with Dutch span, spanne, German Spanne. The sense “pair of horses” is probably from Old English ?espan, ?espann (“a joining; a fastening together; clasp; yoke”), from Proto-West Germanic [Term?]. Cognate with Dutch gespan, German Gespann.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, General American)
  • IPA^(key): /spæn/
• • Rhymes: -æn
• (Australian English)
  • IPA^(key): /spæ?n/
  • Rhymes: -æ?n

Noun

span (plural spans)

1. The space from the thumb to the end of the little finger when extended; nine inches; an eighth of a fathom.
2. (by extension) A small space or a brief portion of time.
   • 1699, George Farquhar, The Constant Couple

     Life's but a span; I'll every inch enjoy.

   • 2007. Zerzan, John. Silence.

     The unsilent present is a time of evaporating attention spans,

3. A portion of something by length; a subsequence.
   • 2004, Robert Harris, Robert Warner, The Definitive Guide to SWT and JFace (page 759)

     For example, in OpenOffice.org or Microsoft Word, each span of text can have a style that defines key characteristics about the text: • What font it uses • Whether it's normal, bolded, italicized, […]

4. (architecture, construction) The spread or extent of an arch or between its abutments, or of a beam, girder, truss, roof, bridge, or the like, between supports.
5. (architecture, construction) The length of a cable, wire, rope, chain between two consecutive supports.
6. (nautical) A rope having its ends made fast so that a purchase can be hooked to the bight; also, a rope made fast in the center so that both ends can be used.
7. (US, Canada) A pair of horses or other animals driven together; usually, such a pair of horses when similar in color, form, and action.
8. (mathematics) The space of all linear combinations of something.
9. (computing) The time required to execute a parallel algorithm on an infinite number of processors, i.e. the shortest distance across a directed acyclic graph representing the computation steps.

Derived terms

• attention span
• eyespan
• memory span
• spanless

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English spannen, from Old English spannan, from Proto-Germanic *spannan? (“to stretch, span”). Cognate with German spannen, Dutch spannen.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) and GenAm
  • IPA^(key): /spæn/
  • Rhymes: -æn
• AusE
  • IPA^(key): /spæ?n/
  • Rhymes: -æ?n

Verb

span (third-person singular simple present spans, present participle spanning, simple past and past participle spanned)

1. (transitive) To extend through the distance between or across.

   The suspension bridge spanned the canyon.

   • 1856-1858, William H. Prescott, History of the Reign of Philip II

     The rivers were spanned by arches of solid masonry.

2. (transitive) To extend through (a time period).

   The parking lot spans three acres.

   The novel spans three centuries.

3. (transitive) To measure by the span of the hand with the fingers extended, or with the fingers encompassing the object.

   to span a space or distance; to span a cylinder
4. (mathematics) To generate an entire space by means of linear combinations.
5. (intransitive, US, dated) To be matched, as horses.
6. (transitive) To fetter, as a horse; to hobble.

Translations

Etymology 3

From Middle English span, from Old English spann, from Proto-Germanic *spann, first and third person singular preterit indicative of Proto-Germanic *spinnan? (“to spin”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, General Australian, General American) IPA^(key): /spæn/
  • Rhymes: -æn

Verb

span

1. (archaic, now nonstandard) simple past tense of spin

Anagrams

• ANPs, NPAS, NSPA, PANs, PNAS, PNAs, Pans, SNAP, naps, pans, snap

Dutch

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sp?n/
• Hyphenation: span
• Rhymes: -?n

Etymology 1

From older gespan.

Noun

span n (plural spannen, diminutive spannetje n)

1. A span, a team (pair or larger team of draught animals). [from 17th c.]
2. A cart or instrument with a team of draught animals. [from 18th c.]
3. A romantic pair, couple. [from 19th c.]

Derived terms

• driespan
• tweespan
• vierspan
• zesspan

Descendants

• Afrikaans: span

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the main entry.

Verb

span

1. first-person singular present indicative of spannen
2. imperative of spannen

Anagrams

• snap

Middle English

Noun

span

1. Alternative form of spanne

Sranan Tongo

Etymology

Borrowed from Dutch gespannen.

Noun

span

1. tense

West Frisian

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

span n (plural spannen, diminutive spantsje)

1. span, team (pair of draught animals in a team)
2. pair, couple

Further reading

• “span (I)”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011

English

Etymology 1

In late Middle English (circa 1400) as masse in the sense of "lump, quantity of matter", from Anglo-Norman masse, in Old French attested from the 11th century, via late Latin massa (“lump, dough”), from Ancient Greek ???? (mâza, “barley-cake, lump (of dough)”). The Greek noun is derived from the verb ????? (máss?, “to knead”), ultimately from a Proto-Indo-European *ma?- (“to oil, knead”). Doublet of masa.The sense of "a large number or quantity" arises circa 1580. The scientific sense is from 1687 (as Latin massa) in the works of Isaac Newton, with the first English use (as mass) occurring in 1704.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mæs/
• Rhymes: -æs

Noun

mass (countable and uncountable, plural masses)

1. (physical) Matter, material.
   1. A quantity of matter cohering together so as to make one body, or an aggregation of particles or things which collectively make one body or quantity, usually of considerable size
   2. (obsolete) Precious metal, especially gold or silver.
   3. (physics) The quantity of matter which a body contains, irrespective of its bulk or volume. It is one of four fundamental properties of matter. It is measured in kilograms in the SI system of measurement.
   4. (pharmacology) A medicinal substance made into a cohesive, homogeneous lump, of consistency suitable for making pills; as, blue mass.
   5. (medicine) A palpable or visible abnormal globular structure; a tumor.
   6. (bodybuilding) Excess body weight, especially in the form of muscle hypertrophy.
   7. (proscribed) Synonym of weight
2. A large quantity; a sum.
   1. Bulk; magnitude; body; size.
   2. The principal part; the main body.
   3. A large body of individuals, especially persons.

   4. (in the plural) The lower classes of persons.

Derived terms

Coordinate terms

(matter):

• weight

Translations

See also

• Customary units: slug, pound, ounce, long ton (1.12 short tons), short ton (commonly used)
• Metric units: gram (g), kilogram (kg), metric ton

Verb

mass (third-person singular simple present masses, present participle massing, simple past and past participle massed)

1. (transitive) To form or collect into a mass; to form into a collective body; to bring together into masses; to assemble.
2. (intransitive) To have a certain mass.

Synonyms

• (to form into a mass): See also Thesaurus:assemble
• (to collect into a mass): See also Thesaurus:coalesce or Thesaurus:round up
• (to have a certain mass): weigh

Translations

Adjective

mass (not generally comparable, comparative masser, superlative massest)

1. Involving a mass of things; concerning a large quantity or number.
2. Involving a mass of people; of, for, or by the masses.

Translations

Derived terms

• mass extinction

Etymology 2

From Middle English messe, masse, from Old English mæsse (“the mass, church festival”) and Old French messe, from Vulgar Latin *messa (“Eucharist, dismissal”), from Late Latin missa, noun use of feminine past participle of classical Latin mittere (“to send”), from ite, missa est (“go, (the assembly) is dismissed”), last words of the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church. Compare Dutch mis (“mass”), German Messe (“mass”), Danish messe (“mass”), Swedish mässa (“mass; expo”), Icelandic messa (“mass”). More at mission.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -??s
• (US) IPA^(key): /mæs/
• (UK) IPA^(key): /mæs/, /m??s/
• Rhymes: -æs

Noun

mass (plural masses)

1. (Christianity) The Eucharist, now especially in Roman Catholicism.
2. (Christianity) Celebration of the Eucharist.
3. (Christianity, usually as the Mass) The sacrament of the Eucharist.
4. A musical setting of parts of the mass.

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

mass (third-person singular simple present masses, present participle massing, simple past and past participle massed)

1. (intransitive, obsolete) To celebrate mass.
   • 1594, Richard Hooker, Of the Lawes of Ecclesiastical Politie

     massing priests

Translations

Further reading

• mass in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• mass in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Anagrams

• ASMS, ASMs, MSAs, SAMs, SMAs, SMSA, Sams, sams

Võro

Etymology 1

From Proto-Finnic *maksa, from Proto-Uralic *mëksa.

Noun

mass (genitive massa, partitive massa)

1. liver

Inflection

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)Related to Estonian maks.

Noun

mass (genitive massu, partitive massu)

1. tax, payment

Inflection

This noun needs an inflection-table template.