Translate distance | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish Definition of distance
noun
1an amount of space between two things or people:I bicycled the short distance home the distance between front and rear wheels the condition of being far off; remoteness:distance makes things look small figurativea significant distance between German and Allied understandings of the war a far-off point or place:watching them from a distance (
the distance)
the more remote part of what is visible or discernible:I heard police sirens in the distance they sped off into the distance an interval of time:a distance of more than twenty years
2the full length of a race:he claimed the 10,000 meter title in only his second race over the distance the distance from the winning post that a horse must have reached when the winner finishes in order to qualify for a subsequent heat. (
the distance)
Boxing the scheduled length of a fight:he has won his first five fights inside the distance
3the avoidance of familiarity; aloofness or reserve:a mix of warmth and distance makes a good neighbor
verb
[with object] make (someone or something) far off or remote in position or nature:her mother wished to distance her from the rough village children (
distance oneself from)
declare that one is not connected with or a supporter of (someone or something):he sought to distance himself from the proposals Horse Racing beat (a horse) by a distance.
