2. Hence, a small space or a brief portion of time.
Yet not to earth's contracted span Thy goodness let
me bound. --Pope.
Life's but a span; I'll every inch enjoy.
--Farquhar.
3. The spread or extent of an arch between its abutments, or
of a beam, girder, truss, roof, bridge, or the like,
between its supports.
4. (Naut.) A rope having its ends made fast so that a
purchase can be hooked to the bight; also, a rope made
fast in the center so that both ends can be used.
5. [Cf. D. span, Sw. spann, Dan. sp[ae]nd, G. gespann. See
{Span}, v. t. ] A pair of horses or other animals driven
together; usually, such a pair of horses when similar in
color, form, and action.
{Span blocks} (Naut.), blocks at the topmast and
topgallant-mast heads, for the studding-sail halyards.
{Span counter}, an old English child's game, in which one
throws a counter on the ground, and another tries to hit
it with his counter, or to get his counter so near it that
he can span the space between them, and touch both the
counters. --Halliwell. ``Henry V., in whose time boys went
to span counter for French crowns.'' --Shak.
{Span iron} (Naut.), a special kind of harpoon, usually
secured just below the gunwale of a whaleboat.
{Span roof}, a common roof, having two slopes and one ridge,
with eaves on both sides. --Gwilt.
{Span shackle} (Naut.), a large bolt driven through the
forecastle deck, with a triangular shackle in the head to
receive the heel of the old-fashioned fish davit. --Ham.
Nav. Encyc.
My right hand hath spanned the heavens. --Isa.
xiviii. 13.
2. To reach from one side of to the order; to stretch over as
an arch.
The rivers were spanned by arches of solid masonry.
--prescott.
3. To fetter, as a horse; to hobble.
All the yarn she [Penelope] spun in Ulysses' absence
did but fill Ithaca full of moths. --Shak.
2. To draw out tediously; to form by a slow process, or by
degrees; to extend to a great length; -- with out; as, to
spin out large volumes on a subject.
Do you mean that story is tediously spun out?
--Sheridan.
3. To protract; to spend by delays; as, to spin out the day
in idleness.
By one delay after another they spin out their whole
lives. --L'Estrange.
4. To cause to turn round rapidly; to whirl; to twirl; as, to
spin a top.
5. To form (a web, a cocoon, silk, or the like) from threads
produced by the extrusion of a viscid, transparent liquid,
which hardens on coming into contact with the air; -- said
of the spider, the silkworm, etc.
6. (Mech.) To shape, as malleable sheet metal, into a hollow
form, by bending or buckling it by pressing against it
with a smooth hand tool or roller while the metal
revolves, as in a lathe.
{To spin a yarn} (Naut.), to tell a story, esp. a long or
fabulous tale.
{To spin hay} (Mil.), to twist it into ropes for convenient
carriage on an expedition.
{To spin street yarn}, to gad about gossiping. [Collog.]