wide

¹

[ wahyd ]

adjective

, wid·er, wid·est.

1. having considerable or great extent from side to side; broad:

   a wide boulevard.

   Antonyms: narrow

2. having a certain or specified extent from side to side:

   three feet wide.

3. of great horizontal extent; extensive; vast; spacious:

   the wide plains of the West.

   Synonyms: ample, comprehensive, boundless

4. of great range or scope; embracing a great number or variety of subjects, cases, etc.:

   wide experience.

5. open to the full or a great extent; expanded; distended:

   to stare with wide eyes.

6. apart or remote from a specified point or object:

   a guess wide of the truth.

7. too far or too much to one side:

   a shot wide of the mark.

8. Baseball. outside ( def 16 ):

   The pitch was wide of the plate.

9. full, ample, or roomy, as clothing:

   He wore wide, flowing robes.

10. Phonetics. lax ¹( def 7 ).
11. British Slang. shrewd; wary.

adverb

1. to the full extent of opening:

   Open your mouth wide.

2. to the utmost, or fully:

   to be wide awake.

3. away from or to one side of a point, mark, purpose, or the like; aside; astray:

   The shot went wide.

4. over an extensive space or region, or far abroad:

   scattered far and wide.

5. to a great, or relatively great, extent from side to side:

   The river runs wide here.

noun

1. Cricket. a bowled ball that goes wide of the wicket, and counts as a run for the side batting.
2. Archaic. a wide space or expanse.

-wide

²

1. a combining form of wide, forming from nouns adjectives with the general sense “extending or applying throughout a given space,” as specified by the noun:

   communitywide; countrywide; worldwide.

wide

/ waɪd /

adjective

1. having a great extent from side to side
2. of vast size or scope; spacious or extensive
3. 1. postpositive having a specified extent, esp from side to side

      two yards wide

   2. in combination covering or extending throughout

      nationwide

4. distant or remote from the desired point, mark, etc

   your guess is wide of the mark

5. (of eyes) opened fully
6. loose, full, or roomy

   wide trousers

7. exhibiting a considerable spread, as between certain limits

   a wide variation

8. phonetics another word for lax open

adverb

1. over an extensive area

   to travel far and wide

2. to the full extent

   he opened the door wide

3. far from the desired point, mark, etc

noun

1. (in cricket) a bowled ball that is outside the batsman's reach and scores a run for the batting side
2. archaic.
   a wide space or extent
3. to the wide
   completely

Derived Forms

• ˈwidely, adverb
• ˈwidish, adjective
• ˈwideness, noun

Other Words From

• wideness noun
• over·wide adjective
• over·widely adverb
• over·wideness noun
• super·wide adjective
• ultra·wide adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of wide¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English wīd; cognate with Dutch wijd, German weit, Old Norse vīthr

Word History and Origins

Origin of wide¹

Old English wīd; related to Old Norse vīthr, Old High German wīt

Idioms and Phrases

• all wool and a yard wide
• cut a wide swath
• far and wide
• give a wide berth to
• lay (oneself wide) open
• leave (wide) open
• off (wide of) the mark

Synonym Study

Wide, broad refer to dimensions. They are often interchangeable, but wide especially applies to things of which the length is much greater than the width: a wide road, piece of ribbon. Broad is more emphatic, and applies to things of considerable or great width, breadth, or extent, especially to surfaces extending laterally: a broad valley.

Example Sentences

Farmers have dominated the debate over the recent Budget's change to inheritance tax – but the issue is much wider than that.

From BBC

The high-relief altar front of gilded copper figures with enameled halos, 7 feet wide and nearly 3 feet tall, powerfully articulates the apostles.

From Los Angeles Times

This is why they are popular in a wide range of consumer products from umbrellas and clothing to furniture, cookware and food packaging.

From Salon

The government said they would partially replace existing civil injunction powers, with a "wider range of penalties" available to deal with breaches.

From BBC

While the drop was bigger than expected last month, the ONS said that wider trends showed sales had been sturdy.

From BBC

Related Words

• ample
• broad
• deep
• expanded
• extensive
• far-reaching
• full
• immense
• large
• loose
• spacious
• vast