What does "space" mean?
Unlimited or generalized extent, physical or otherwise.; The distance between objects.
Space
/speɪs/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Unlimited or generalized extent, physical or otherwise.; The distance between objects.
- Grammar: space is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: blank, 3-d, accommodating, accommodation.
- Useful contrasts: blue marble, dense crowd push, dutch aarde.
- Usage evidence: How do you find food in outer space?
How to use "space"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "space" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "space" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "space" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "space" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "space" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "blank" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "space", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Unlimited or generalized extent, physical or otherwise.; The distance between objects. countable, uncountable
"But neere him, thy Angell / Becomes a feare: as being o're-powr'd, therefore / Make ſpace enough betweene you."
- 2 the unlimited expanse in which everything is located wordnet
- 3 Unlimited or generalized extent, physical or otherwise.; A physical extent across two or three dimensions (sometimes for or to do something). countable, uncountable
"O God, I could be bounded in a nutſhell, and / count my ſelfe a King of infinite ſpace; were it not that / I haue bad dreames."
- 4 (printing) a block of type without a raised letter; used for spacing between words or sentences wordnet
- 5 Unlimited or generalized extent, physical or otherwise.; A physical extent in all directions, seen as an attribute of the universe (now usually considered as a part of space-time), or a mathematical model of this. countable, uncountable
"Space is the Phantasme of a Thing existing without the Mind simply."
Show 21 more definitions
- 6 a blank area wordnet
- 7 Unlimited or generalized extent, physical or otherwise.; The near-vacuum in which planets, stars and other celestial objects are situated; the universe beyond the earth's atmosphere. countable, uncountable
"the first man in space"
- 8 a blank character used to separate successive words in writing or printing wordnet
- 9 Unlimited or generalized extent, physical or otherwise.; The physical and psychological area one needs within which to live or operate; personal freedom. countable, uncountable
"Around the time of my parents' divorce, I learned that reading could also give me space."
- 10 one of the areas between or below or above the lines of a musical staff wordnet
- 11 Of time.; Free time; leisure, opportunity. archaic, countable, uncountable
"Come on, thou are granted ſpace."
- 12 any location outside the Earth's atmosphere wordnet
- 13 Of time.; A specific (specified) period of time. countable, uncountable
"I pray you, sirs, to take some cheers the while I go for a moment's space to my poor afflicted child."
- 14 an area reserved for some particular purpose wordnet
- 15 Of time.; An undefined period of time (without qualifier, especially a short period); a while. countable, uncountable
"Even Comrade Butt cast off his gloom for a space and immersed his whole being in scrambled eggs."
- 16 an empty area (usually bounded in some way between things) wordnet
- 17 A bounded or specific extent, physical or otherwise.; A (chiefly empty) area or volume with set limits or boundaries; (architecture) such a space inside or outside a building, often with a specified use. countable, uncountable
"exhibition space; public space; the space is light-filled"
- 18 the interval between two times wordnet
- 19 A bounded or specific extent, physical or otherwise.; A position on the staff or stave bounded by lines. countable, uncountable
"The note next above Sol is La; La, therefore, stands in the 2nd space; Si, on the 3rd line, &c."
- 20 A bounded or specific extent, physical or otherwise.; A gap in text between words, lines etc., or a digital character used to create such a gap. countable, uncountable
"According to experts, a single line of text should rarely exceed about 50 characters (including letters and all the spaces between words)."
- 21 A bounded or specific extent, physical or otherwise.; A piece of metal type used to separate words, cast lower than other type so as not to take ink, especially one that is narrower than one en (compare quad). countable, uncountable
"If it be only a Single Letter or two that drops, he thruſts the end of his Bodkin between every Letter of that Word, till he comes to a Space: and then perhaps by forcing thoſe Letters closer, he may have room to put in another Space or a Thin Space; which if he cannot do, and he finds the Space ſtand Looſe in the Form; he with the Point of his Bodkin picks the Space up and bows it a little; which bowing makes the Letters on each ſide of the Space keep their parallel diſtance; for by its Spring it thruſts the Letters that were cloſed with the end of the Bodkin to their adjunct Letters, that needed no cloſing."
- 22 A bounded or specific extent, physical or otherwise.; A gap; an empty place. countable, uncountable
"Mainstream Hollywood would not cater to the taste for sexual sensation, which left a space for B-movies, including noir."
- 23 A bounded or specific extent, physical or otherwise.; A set of points, each of which is uniquely specified by a number (the dimensionality) of coordinates. countable, uncountable
- 24 A bounded or specific extent, physical or otherwise.; A generalized construct or set whose members have some property in common; typically there will be a geometric metaphor allowing these members to be viewed as "points". Often used with a restricting modifier describing the members (e.g. vector space), or indicating the inventor of the construct (e.g. Hilbert space). countable
"Functional analysis is best approached through a sound knowledge of Hilbert space theory."
- 25 A bounded or specific extent, physical or otherwise.; A field, area, or sphere of activity or endeavour. countable, figuratively
"innovation in the browser space"
- 26 A bounded or specific extent, physical or otherwise.; Anything analogous to a physical space in which one can interact, such as an online chat room. countable, uncountable
"Communication in Internet chat spaces allows participants to communicate so freely in the relative safety of anonymity that they forget their privacy."
Verb
- 1 To roam, walk, wander. intransitive, obsolete
"But she as Fayes are wont, in priuie place / Did spend her dayes, and lov'd in forests wyld to space."
- 2 place at intervals wordnet
- 3 To set some distance apart. transitive
"Faye had spaced the pots at 8-inch intervals on the windowsill."
- 4 To insert or utilise spaces in a written text.
"This paragraph seems badly spaced."
- 5 To space out (become distracted, lose focus).
"My sprout, like I'm totally spaced over you and besides I like older women (arh-arh). I love you..."
Show 2 more definitions
- 6 To kill (someone) by ejection into outer space, usually without a space suit. transitive
"The captain spaced the traitors."
- 7 To travel into and through outer space. intransitive
"He well remembered, when he was a junior officer, how the sight of a well dressed, impeccably neat commanding officer, no matter how long they had been spacing, maintained the enthusiasm, confidence and morale of the officers and men."
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Antonyms
blue marbledense crowd pushdutch aardegerman zeichen
Example
"How do you find food in outer space?"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "space"?
Common synonyms include: blank, 3-d, accommodating, accommodation, acreage, aerospace.
How do you use "space" in a sentence?
How do you find food in outer space?
How do you pronounce "space"?
Pronounced /speɪs/.
Etymology
From Middle English space, from Anglo-Norman space, variant of espace, espas, et al.; and spaze, variant of espace, from Latin spatium, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)peh₂- (“to stretch, to pull”).