dis·tance
ˈdi-stən(t)s 
1
: the quality or state of being distant: such as
a
: spatial remoteness
quite a distance between the two hospitals
c
: difference, disparity
the distance between the two philosophies
2
a(1)
mathematics
: an extent of area or an advance (see advance entry 2 sense 1) along a route measured in a straight line
measure the distance between point A and point B
the distance between the Earth and the Sun
(2)
: an extent of space measured other than linearly
within walking distance
b
: separation (see separation sense 2b) in time
spanning the distance of several centuries
c(1)
: length of a race or contest
won both the 400 meter and the 800 meter distances
(2)
: the full length (as of a prizefight or ball game)
(3)
: a long race
distance training
d
: an extent of advance from a beginning
they carried Puritan severity quite a distance—
John Gould
John Gould
e
: expanse
A distance of field, woods, and diluted November sky …—Elizabeth Bowen
Elizabeth Bowen
f
mathematics
: the degree or amount of separation between two points, lines, surfaces, or objects
3
: a distant point or region
gazed out into the distance
4
a
: capacity to observe dispassionately
b
fine arts
: aesthetic distance
5
obsolete
: discord
distanced; distancing
1
: to make or maintain a personal or emotional separation from : to place or keep at a distance
able to distance themselves from the tragedy
distances herself from her coworkers
2
: to leave far behind : outstrip
easily distanced the other candidates in the race
: taking place via electronic media linking instructors and students who are not together in a classroom
distance learning
distance education
Synonyms
Examples of distance in a Sentence
Noun
What is the distance between the Earth and the Sun?
The gas station is a short distance away.
Speed is measured in time and distance.
She kept the children a safe distance from the road.
The sign was hard to read from a distance.
We followed them at a distance.
She feels a distance from her brother that wasn't there before.
Although they were once good friends, there was now considerable distance between them.
He wants to put distance between himself and his former boss.
Recent Examples on the WebKathryn Prociv, NBC News, 11 Apr. 2024
In a closer game, or a different era of pitcher workload management, Glasnow might have had the chance to go the distance.
—Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2024
Meanwhile, the distance between men and women is growing, not just politically but also emotionally.
—Se Eun Gong, NPR, 10 Apr. 2024
Ditto on the distance for Headlands Brewing, which is located at 3420 Mt. Diablo Blvd.
—Jay R. Brooks, The Mercury News, 9 Apr. 2024
Inmates start with conditioning and running shorter distances, before potentially taking part in a full marathon, negotiating 105 laps of a gritty, uneven prison track by the end of the year.
—Amy Woodyatt, CNN, 8 Apr. 2024
Once the watch is moved again, the motion detector at 4:30 causes the watch to leap back to the accurate time, moving the shortest distance—clockwise or counter—to minimize battery expenditure.
—Allen Farmelo, Robb Report, 8 Apr. 2024
Watching the horror in Gaza from just a short distance away is harder.
—Tom Soufi Burridge, ABC News, 7 Apr. 2024
Nighttime is the best time to view if an eruption occurs - only at a safe distance.
—Lea Lane, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
The Editors, The Atlantic, 6 Apr. 2024
Recently, Lambert distanced himself from Musk after emails surfaced showing the tycoon had always favored OpenAI becoming a for-profit company—just one under his control and not Microsoft’s.
—Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024
Many McDonald’s operators in the wider region quickly distanced themselves from the Israeli firm’s actions.
—Maisie Linford, CNN, 4 Apr. 2024
But the governor also distanced herself from responsibility for the incident, noting that the state does have security systems in place that are not foolproof while taking aim at congressional Republicans for not supporting President Biden’s bipartisan immigration bill.
—Michael Lee, Fox News, 2 Apr. 2024
Lockshin’s producers distanced themselves from him — but that was not enough to keep them in the good graces of the Russian Cinema Fund.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 1 Apr. 2024
In the final days of Taiwan’s presidential race, the Nationalist candidate, Hou Yu-ih, distanced himself from Mr. Ma over comments that the former president made about Taiwan’s military vulnerabilities.
—Amy Chang Chien, New York Times, 31 Mar. 2024
Maybe the Big Ten and SEC continue to distance themselves from the remaining 100 schools within the FBS structure.
—Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 29 Mar. 2024
Surrounding myself with people who uplifted and encouraged me while distancing myself from negativity was essential for my emotional and mental well-being.
—Angela Quach, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
Brian Metzler, Outside Online, 24 Aug. 2022
Jornet, a 34-year-old endurance athlete from the Catalan region of Spain is considered by many to be the best ultra-distance runner of his generation.
—Brian Metzler, Outside Online, 15 July 2022
The problem is, every single one of them is either a short- or mid-distance light.
—Wes Siler, Outside Online, 27 Jan. 2022
Overall, the Escape Pursuit is a seemingly simple shoe that checks all the boxes for short- to mid-distance runs on hilly terrain.
—The Editors, Outside Online, 7 Nov. 2021
Thirty-six-year-old Anchorage cyclist John Lackey, riding a fat bike, blew through the 2015 Iditarod Trail Invitational human-powered ultra-distance race that began Sunday, breaking two records, reports the Alaska Dispatch News.
—The Editors, Outside Online, 4 Mar. 2015
Most runners should spend time lifting in this range, as heavy lifting benefits sprinters and ultra-distance runners alike.
—Kyle Norman, Outside Online, 10 Sep. 2020
This summer’s ultra-distance races will be the true test to see if the Flight shakes up the trail scene the way carbon super shoes did for road racing.
—Adam Chase, Outside Online, 11 Feb. 2021
At one point, the former employee said, Johnson called out the employee and a mid-distance runner in front of the team during a training session inside the Moshofsky Center, the school’s indoor practice facility.
—Ken Goe For The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, 2 Dec. 2021
Noun
The intense line of storms had traveled a continuous distance of more than 650 miles from west of Houston to south of Tallahassee.
—Kathryn Prociv, NBC News, 11 Apr. 2024
In a closer game, or a different era of pitcher workload management, Glasnow might have had the chance to go the distance.
—Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2024
Meanwhile, the distance between men and women is growing, not just politically but also emotionally.
—Se Eun Gong, NPR, 10 Apr. 2024
Ditto on the distance for Headlands Brewing, which is located at 3420 Mt. Diablo Blvd.
—Jay R. Brooks, The Mercury News, 9 Apr. 2024
Inmates start with conditioning and running shorter distances, before potentially taking part in a full marathon, negotiating 105 laps of a gritty, uneven prison track by the end of the year.
—Amy Woodyatt, CNN, 8 Apr. 2024
Once the watch is moved again, the motion detector at 4:30 causes the watch to leap back to the accurate time, moving the shortest distance—clockwise or counter—to minimize battery expenditure.
—Allen Farmelo, Robb Report, 8 Apr. 2024
Watching the horror in Gaza from just a short distance away is harder.
—Tom Soufi Burridge, ABC News, 7 Apr. 2024
Nighttime is the best time to view if an eruption occurs - only at a safe distance.
—Lea Lane, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
Verb
Meanwhile, Donald Trump is also distancing himself from Netanyahu’s handling of the war.
—The Editors, The Atlantic, 6 Apr. 2024
Recently, Lambert distanced himself from Musk after emails surfaced showing the tycoon had always favored OpenAI becoming a for-profit company—just one under his control and not Microsoft’s.
—Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024
Many McDonald’s operators in the wider region quickly distanced themselves from the Israeli firm’s actions.
—Maisie Linford, CNN, 4 Apr. 2024
But the governor also distanced herself from responsibility for the incident, noting that the state does have security systems in place that are not foolproof while taking aim at congressional Republicans for not supporting President Biden’s bipartisan immigration bill.
—Michael Lee, Fox News, 2 Apr. 2024
Lockshin’s producers distanced themselves from him — but that was not enough to keep them in the good graces of the Russian Cinema Fund.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 1 Apr. 2024
In the final days of Taiwan’s presidential race, the Nationalist candidate, Hou Yu-ih, distanced himself from Mr. Ma over comments that the former president made about Taiwan’s military vulnerabilities.
—Amy Chang Chien, New York Times, 31 Mar. 2024
Maybe the Big Ten and SEC continue to distance themselves from the remaining 100 schools within the FBS structure.
—Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 29 Mar. 2024
Surrounding myself with people who uplifted and encouraged me while distancing myself from negativity was essential for my emotional and mental well-being.
—Angela Quach, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
Adjective
Doug Mayer, an American who operates the Run the Alps trail running tour business out of Chamonix, said the PTL is closer to a mountaineering adventure than a typical ultra-distance trail running race.
—Brian Metzler, Outside Online, 24 Aug. 2022
Jornet, a 34-year-old endurance athlete from the Catalan region of Spain is considered by many to be the best ultra-distance runner of his generation.
—Brian Metzler, Outside Online, 15 July 2022
The problem is, every single one of them is either a short- or mid-distance light.
—Wes Siler, Outside Online, 27 Jan. 2022
Overall, the Escape Pursuit is a seemingly simple shoe that checks all the boxes for short- to mid-distance runs on hilly terrain.
—The Editors, Outside Online, 7 Nov. 2021
Thirty-six-year-old Anchorage cyclist John Lackey, riding a fat bike, blew through the 2015 Iditarod Trail Invitational human-powered ultra-distance race that began Sunday, breaking two records, reports the Alaska Dispatch News.
—The Editors, Outside Online, 4 Mar. 2015
Most runners should spend time lifting in this range, as heavy lifting benefits sprinters and ultra-distance runners alike.
—Kyle Norman, Outside Online, 10 Sep. 2020
This summer’s ultra-distance races will be the true test to see if the Flight shakes up the trail scene the way carbon super shoes did for road racing.
—Adam Chase, Outside Online, 11 Feb. 2021
At one point, the former employee said, Johnson called out the employee and a mid-distance runner in front of the team during a training session inside the Moshofsky Center, the school’s indoor practice facility.
—Ken Goe For The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, 2 Dec. 2021
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'distance.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near distance
Cite this Entry
“Distance.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/distance. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
distance
1 of 3 noun
dis·tance
ˈdis-tən(t)s
1
a
: separation in time
b
: the space or amount of space between two points, lines, surfaces, or objects
c
: the full length
go the distance
2
: the quality or state of being not friendly : reserve
3
: a distant point or place
a light seen in the distance
distance
2 of 3 verb
distanced; distancing
1
: to make or keep an emotional separation from
2
: to leave far behind
distance
3 of 3 adjective
: taking place using electronic media that links instructors and students who are not together in a classroom
distance learning
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