Topic: SPACE

Explore SPACE Topic

Date:	1200-1300
Language:	Old French
Origin:	espace, from Latin spatium 'area, room, length of space or time'

space
1 noun

space1 S1 W1 See pronunciation table in "How to use dictionary" pages

empty area

[uncountable] the amount of an area, room, container etc that is empty or available to be used

space for

There's space for a table and two chairs.

How much space is there on each disk?

more/less/enough space

Now that we've got three kids, it'd be nice to have a bit more space.

space to do something

He had plenty of space to study.

The hedge takes up too much space.

sense/feeling of space (=the feeling that a place is large and empty, so you can move around easily)

In small homes a single colour scheme can create a sense of space.

area for particular purpose

[uncountable and countable] an area, especially one used for a particular purpose:

a supermarket with 700 free parking spaces

storage/cupboard/shelf space

We really do need more storage space.

the factory's floor space (=the size of the available floor area)

between things

[countable] an empty place between two things, or between two parts of something [= gap]

space between

the space between the house and the garage

Lucy cleared a space on her desk.

There was an empty space where the flowers had been.

outside the earth

[uncountable]HA the area beyond the Earth where the stars and planets are

in/into space

Who was the first American in space?

creatures from outer space (=far away in space)

space travel/research/programme/exploration

the history of space travel

where things exist

[uncountable]HP all of the area in which everything exists, and in which everything has a position or direction:

the exact point in space where two lines meet

how people of other cultures think about time and space

time

in/within the space of something

within a particular period of time:

Mandy had four children in the space of four years.

a short space of time

a short period of time:

They achieved a lot in a short space of time.

empty land

[uncountable and countable] land, or an area of land that has not been built on:

a pleasant town centre with plenty of open space

the wide open spaces of the prairies

the loss of green space in cities

freedom

[uncountable] the freedom to do what you want or do things on your own, especially in a relationship with someone else:

We give each other space in our marriage.

She needed time and space to sort out her life.

in writing

[countable]

a) an empty area between written or printed words, lines etc:

Leave a space after each number.

b) the width of a typed letter of the alphabet:

The word 'the' takes up three spaces.

c) a place provided for you to write your name or other information on a document, piece of paper etc:

Please write any comments in the space provided.

in a report/book

[uncountable]TCN the amount of space in a newspaper, magazine, or book that is used for a particular subject:

The story got very little space in the national newspapers.

look/stare/gaze into space

to look straight in front of you without looking at anything in particular, usually because you are thinking

➔ breathing space , personal space

; ➔ waste of space

at waste1 (5)

; ➔ watch this space

at watch1 (11)WORD FOCUS: space

WORD FOCUS: space

vehicles used in space: spaceship, spacecraft, rocket, (space) shuttle, probe, satellite, space station
someone who travels in space: astronaut, cosmonaut Russian
parts of a rocket's journey: countdown, launch, blast-off/take-off/lift-off, leaving the earth's atmosphere, going into orbit, re-entering the earth's atmosphere, splashdown/touchdown
places and things in space: planet, moon, star, sun, satellite, solar system, constellation, galaxy, universe, the cosmos, black hole, quasar, comet, meteor, asteroid
the study of space: astronomyspace ➔ UFO , NASA , science fiction