rhizoverbBeta
DictionaryextentSize or degree
noun

extent

ik-STENT/ɪkˈstent/

How far something reaches or applies.

The measuring tape shows the full extent of the puddle.

A man measures the full spread of a puddle from a tipped bucket, with a measuring tape stretched between its two farthest edges.
Etymology
exLatinout
+tentLatinto stretch

The underlying image is “stretching out.” Extent names not the stretching itself but how far something reaches, whether measured as distance, range, or degree.

In context

OurCrowd13:01
the extent to which others agree with them and underestimate the amount of the extent of differences
Prof. Daniel Kahneman: Art & Science of Decision Making

More examples

  • We did not know the full extent of the problem.
  • Her authority has a limited extent.
  • The flood's extent became clear in aerial photographs.

Forms

extent · extents

Similar words

scope
Often the coverage or limits of a subject.
degree
How much of a quality exists rather than its physical spread.