length
Other forms: lengths
Length is a measurement of how long something is in time or space. You can measure the length of a table or the length of a movie.
If an object has multiple distances to be measured (like a rectangle for example), then length is taken to be the longest of the measurements (as opposed to the width, in the case of the rectangle). Before babies learn to walk, they are measured for length, but once they begin to stand reliably the same measurement changes names, and become height.
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the linear extent in space from one end to the other; the longest dimension of something that is fixed in place“the length of the table was 5 feet”types:circumferencethe length of the closed curve of a circlediam, diameterthe length of a straight line passing through the center of a circle and connecting two points on the circumferencelongnessthe property of being of long spatial extentshortnessthe property of being of short spatial extentsemidiameterthe apparent radius of a celestial body when viewed as a disc from the earthradius of curvaturethe radius of the circle of curvature; the absolute value of the reciprocal of the curvature of a curve at a given pointwindagethe space between the projectile of a smoothbore gun and the surface of the bore of the gunelongationthe quality of being elongatedtype of:physical propertyany property used to characterize matter and energy and their interactionsdimensionthe magnitude of something in a particular direction (especially length or width or height)fundamental measure, fundamental quantityone of the four quantities that are the basis of systems of measurement
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size of the gap between two places“he determined the length of the shortest line segment joining the two points”synonyms: distancetypes:leg(nautical) the distance traveled by a sailing vessel on a single tackarm's lengtha distance sufficient to exclude intimacygaugethe distance between the rails of a railway or between the wheels of a trainlight timedistance measured in terms of the speed of light (or radio waves)skip distancethe shortest distance that permits radio signals (of a given frequency) to travel from the transmitter to the receiver by reflection from the ionospherewingspreaddistance between the tips of the wings (as of a bird or insect) when fully extendedaltitudethe perpendicular distance from the base of a geometric figure to the opposite vertex (or side if parallel)broad gaugea railroad track (or its width) broader than the standard 56.5 inchesnarrow gaugea railroad track (or its width) narrower than the standard 56.5 inchesstandard gaugerailroad track having the standard width of 56.5 inchestype of:sizethe physical magnitude of something (how big it is)
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a section of something that is long and narrow
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continuance in time“he complained about the length of time required”synonyms: durationtypes:longnessduration as an extensioncontinuation, lengthiness, prolongation, protractionthe consequence of being lengthened in durationendlessnessthe property of being (or seeming to be) without endshortnessthe property of being of short temporal extentfermata(music) a pause or hold on a note or rest, with the length determined by the performer or conductorceaselessness, continuousness, incessancy, incessantnessthe quality of something that continues without end or interruptiondurability, enduringness, lastingness, strengthpermanence by virtue of the power to resist stress or forceperdurabilitythe property of being extremely durabletemporarinessthe property of lasting only a short timetransience, transiency, transitorinessan impermanence that suggests the inevitability of ending or dyingmortalitythe quality or state of being mortalimmortalitythe quality or state of being immortalcurtailmentthe temporal property of being cut shortbriefnessthe temporal property of being very shorttype of:temporal propertya property relating to time
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the property of being the extent of something from beginning to end“the editor limited the length of my article to 500 words”type of:extentthe distance or area or volume over which something extends
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Vocabulary lists containing length
Word Generation Science is a program combining vocabulary with a multidisciplinary discussion of various science topics. Here are links to the word lists for Word Generation Science: Scientific Thinking, Preparing a Scientific Investigation, Measurement, Life Science, Energy, Introductory Chemistry Concepts.
Vocabulary from "Beowulf" (translated by by Gummere).
If you feel obtuse when it comes to angles, review this list of geometry terms. You'll learn about planes, polygons, perimeter, and more. It's as easy as pi!