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reach

[reech]

Example Sentences Origin

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verb (used with object)

to get to or get as far as in moving, going, traveling, etc.: The boat reached the shore.

to come to or arrive at in some course of progress, action, etc.: Your letter never reached me.

to succeed in touching or seizing with an outstretched hand, a pole, etc.: to reach a book on a high shelf.

to stretch or hold out; extend: reaching out a hand in greeting.

to stretch or extend so as to touch or meet: The bookcase reaches the ceiling.

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to establish communication with: I called but couldn't reach you.

to amount to, as in the sum or total: The cost will reach millions.

to penetrate to: distant stars the eye cannot reach.

to succeed in striking or hitting, as with a weapon or missile: The artillery fire reached the shore.

10.

to succeed in making contact with, influencing, impressing, interesting, convincing, etc.: a program that reached a large teenage audience.

COLLAPSE

verb (used without object)

11.

to make a stretch, as with the hand or arm.

12.

to become outstretched, as the hand or arm.

13.

to make a movement or effort as if to touch or seize something: to reach for a weapon.

14.

to extend in operation or effect: power that reaches throughout the land.

15.

to stretch in space; extend in direction, length, distance, etc.: a coat reaching to the knee; a tower reaching to the skies.

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16.

to extend or continue in time.

17.

to get or come to a specified place, person, condition, etc. (often followed by to).

18.

to amount (often followed by to): sums reaching to a considerable total.

19.

to penetrate: Fields of flowers extended as far as the eye could reach.

20.

to assert or agree without certainty or sufficient evidence; infer hastily: I'd be reaching if I said I had the answer to your question.

21.

Nautical.

to sail on a reach.

to sail with the wind forward of the beam but so as not to require sailing close-hauled.

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Reach is one of our favorite verbs.

So is bowdlerise. Does it mean:

to expurgate (a written work) by removing or modifying passages considered vulgar or objectionable.

to steal or take dishonestly (money, esp. public funds, or property entrusted to one's care); embezzle.

LEARN MORE FUN, UNUSUAL VERBS WITH WORD DYNAMO...

noun

22.

an act or instance of reaching: to make a reach for a gun.

23.

the extent or distance of reaching: within reach of his voice.

24.

range of effective action, power, or capacity.

25.

a continuous stretch or extent of something: a reach of woodland.

26.

Also called pound. a level portion of a canal, between locks.

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27.

Nautical. a point of sailing in which the wind is within a few points of the beam, either forward of the beam (close reach), directly abeam (beam reach), or abaft the beam (broad reach).

28.

the pole connecting the rear axle of a wagon to the transverse bar or bolster over the front axle supporting the wagon bed.

29.

a straight portion of a river between two bends.

COLLAPSE

Origin:
before 900; (v.) Middle English rechen, Old English rǣcan (cognate with German reichen, Dutch reiken); (noun) derivative of the v.

Related forms

reach·a·ble, adjective

reach·a·bil·i·ty, noun

reach·er, noun

un·reach·a·ble, adjective

un·reached, adjective

Synonyms
1. attain. 24. area, sphere, scope.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source

Link To reach

Example Sentences

Such a change, they said, would keep contraception out of reach for millions of women.

In that time, doctors must rely on intuition and pattern recognition-this symptom suggests that ailment-to reach a diagnosis.

Launching a radio station is a cheaper way of increasing reach than launching a television channel, but it is still not cheap.

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Such a change, they said, would keep contraception out of reach for millions of women.

In that time, doctors must rely on intuition and pattern recognition-this symptom suggests that ailment-to reach a diagnosis.

Launching a radio station is a cheaper way of increasing reach than launching a television channel, but it is still not cheap.

Dozens of countries are racing to reach space before their neighbors do.

Such computers would harness the physical properties of quantum bits, or qubits, to expand the reach of computation.

The control rods absorb neutrons before they can reach the uranium.

Garden-worthy plants show up at public gardens long before they reach the nurseries.

And the latest version will wake you up when you reach your stop.

Things go downhill from youth to middle age until they reach a nadir commonly known as the mid-life crisis.

Of these, only the muons have enough penetrating power to reach the ground unscathed.

Six of seven birds tested used the short stick to reach a longer one, which they then used to get their treat.

Train larger trees to a modified central leader to keep fruit within easy reach.

Until recently, that meant the area was out of reach.

Before you reach your goals you have to define them.

It's finally your turn, and as you reach for the taxi door a large man pushes in front of you, practically knocking you over.

Many jobless people, he realized, cannot afford a car to reach a job site.

Unlike black plastic, it is porous and allows air and water to reach plant roots.

He bears scars from those times when a project of his failed to reach the public.

Greece sounds three warnings that reach far beyond its borders.

Magnetic semiconductors reach higher temperatures.

The global community has only begun to focus on what kind of crop investments you need to reach the poorest of the poor.

It seems that something so beautiful shouldn't be this easy to reach.

The violence is making it increasingly difficult for international aid organisations to reach them.

Global warming has extended the destructive reach of humankind.

Forsman wanted to reach their nest to see if this year's eggs had hatched-and survived.

Repeat, layering bunches until you reach the cord's end.

Freer trade in financial services is once again within reach.

The delivery trucks can reach their destinations in six minutes using the routing schedule outlined below.

The parts lists and instructions are within easy reach.

Inexpensive galvanized tubs make handy drink coolers to place around the garden within easy reach of thirsty party guests.

These are among the biggest rural-development organisations in the world, and they have an awesome reach.

All these groups have low nutritional status but reach significantly different average height levels.

And because it flew so high, the plane was out of reach of an enemy's intercepting blow.

Shelving carved into the wall over the tub keeps bathing supplies tucked away, but within easy reach.

It's pretty cool: it shows you the places in your city that you can reach in a given amount of time using public transport.

Matematicians can't reach it, but engineers can get close enough.

From academic freedom to technology transfer, legal issues now reach into almost.

Today even cash-strapped innovators can reach markets that were once the prerogative of giant organisations.

Yamamoto said the chimps were trained to use sticks to drag straws placed out of reach and to use straws to drink juice.

Today he insists that reality may forever be beyond reach of our understanding.

The government's attempts to battle poverty reach communities of refugees from violence in the countryside.

Reach thousands of attendees at relevant academic conferences at no additional cost.

But it is within the reach of people to control their own activities.

Scientists and diplomats review and edit their global warming proposal line by line to reach a consensus.

It is completely impractical, the handlebars put out of the riders reach by the iron-pipe.

As campus psychologists go online, they reach more students, but may also risk lawsuits.

Increasingly, advertisers are learning how to reach the same people on other websites, for less money.

Sometimes gazelles can zig and zag out of reach and outlast their often short-winded pursuers.

The engine can operate for weeks at a time and so reach high velocities.

Not with an arrow from a bow might a man in his strength reach from his hollow ship into that deep cave.

Narrowly oval, green to gray-green leaves that reach less than an inch long clothe the random-growing.

Never before has a tripod maker, for example, been able to actually reach inside a camera.

PhD in-hand by time of appointment, and demonstrated accomplishment or promise as a regional expert with a global reach.

Advertisers believe that about half of all traditional advertising does not reach the right audience.

We aimed to reach the arch too-and climb it in his memory.

When hormones, neurotransmitters or chemical attractors reach a cell, they dock to and activate a membrane-spanning receptor.

Perhaps they're trying to reach out to today's kids.

Too bad the mortgage crisis, inflation, and joblessness have put that out of reach.

Looking to make money and reach more working students, state universities are.

He dips into a tele turn and screams past me on the opposite reach.

When cells reach the end of their useful life, internal mechanisms kick in and the cell automatically perishes, a process.

With both sides stymied by not being able to directly reach the other, the war went underground.

The trees' roots reach down through a layer of silt and then between the lava crags to tap into water trapped beneath.

Sport can reach the right people, sometimes with remarkable accuracy.

Rappel and downclimb back to the high camp, which you'll reach by late afternoon.

Stories of its great wealth drove many to try to reach the fabled city.

Find the right campground, and even top-dollar destinations are within reach.

Today's artists have surprising new ways to reach fans and make a living.

Internet2 officials have announced plans for a new effort to reach out.

Although their circulation has declined, newspapers still reach large audiences.

He explains that he wants to inspire kids to dream their dreams and reach their own goals.

Imaging it has been difficult, however, because relatively few seismic waves reach it and return to the surface.

They now reach out and grab the viewer and create a psychological experience.

For raspberry fruit to reach perfection, plants need winter chill and a lingering springtime with slowly warming temperatures.

It takes about four hours to reach a full charge, and this gives you enough juice to charge an iPhone, twice.

We offer special discounted rates exclusively for publishers who wish to reach these active readers.

Many individuals and companies now depend on eBay to reach their customers.

Each time you answer correctly, you'll reach a new park.

Counting butterflies could be a good way to reach this goal.

Hang you rifle or crossbow on the hook, the thinking goes and it will remain out of reach or troublesome mud and leaves.

Foreign students say that because university representatives rarely reach out to them, they rely on each.

When neither of the negotiators had lived abroad, none was able to reach a deal.

They can reach deep down below the surface of lakes or in wetlands to grab plants to eat.

As such, it can be hard to reach and map them with the limited budgets archaeologists typically have.

Rather scarce and expensive because of time required to reach salable size.

He quickly suggested putting a hooked stick in each room that could be used to reach up and grab the metal hook on the screen.

It is cheaper, easier to reach scattered audiences and can get round local political difficulties.

Find out what causes them and why they turn into a deadly wall of water when they reach the shore.

Plants tolerate broad range of soils, including heavy clayMost are dense shrubs that can eventually reach tree size.

We have to challenge ourselves and put up some commands and reach them," he said.

The weapon fires bullets with microchips that can be programmed to detonate when they reach a specific distance.

The only way to reach this charming island is by boat.

Giraffes' long necks are perfectly suited to harvesting tender leaves beyond the reach of other herbivores.

Begin feeding with liquid fertilizer a week or two after plants reach the two-leaf stage.

But if they become confused and head toward lights on a boardwalk or a hotel, they'll be too tired to reach the ocean.

Normal mice took an additional four days to reach this level.

That's why the whole world was trying to reach him for comment.

She deliberately sought, and got, the widest possible reach.

Elsewhere in the world, dinosaurs are beginning to reach enormous sizes and to dominate the terrestrial ecosystems.

The new findings may have implications that reach beyond employee productivity:.

Others reach sizes shocking to those who are only familiar with common tree squirrels.

As yet, these resources lie beyond the reach of commercial interests because mining the ocean floor strains the bottom line.

By the time their light might reach us it could be so disperse that it could never be detected.

COLLAPSE

Collins

World English Dictionary

reach (riːtʃ)

—vb
1.	(tr) to arrive at or get to (a place, person, etc) in the course of movement or action: to reach the office
2.	to extend as far as (a point or place): to reach the ceiling; can you reach?
3.	(tr) to come to (a certain condition, stage, or situation): to reach the point of starvation
4.	(intr) to extend in influence or operation: the Roman conquest reached throughout England
5.	informal (tr) to pass or give (something to a person) with the outstretched hand: to reach someone a book
6.	(intr; foll by out, for, or after) to make a movement (towards), as if to grasp or touch: to reach for something on a shelf
7.	(intr; foll by for or after) to strive or yearn: to reach for the impossible
8.	(tr) to make contact or communication with (someone): we tried to reach him all day
9.	(tr) to strike, esp in fencing or boxing
10.	(tr) to amount to (a certain sum): to reach the five million mark
11.	(intr) nautical to sail on a tack with the wind on or near abeam

—n
12.	the act of reaching
13.	the extent or distance of reaching: within reach of safety; beyond her reach
14.	the range of influence, power, jurisdiction, etc
15.	an open stretch of water, esp on a river
16.	nautical the direction or distance sailed by a vessel on one tack
17.	a bar on the rear axle of a vehicle connecting it with some part at the front end
18.	television, radio the percentage of the population selecting a broadcast programme or channel for more than a specified time during a day or week
19.	marketing the proportion of a market that an advertiser hopes to reach at least once in a campaign

[Old English rǣcan; related to Old Frisian rēka, Old High German reihhen]

'reachable

—*adj*

'reacher

—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source

Etymonline

Word Origin & History

reach

O.E. ræcan "to extend, hold forth," also "to succeed in touching," from W.Gmc. *raikjan "stretch out the hand" (cf. O.Fris. reka, M.Du. reiken), from P.Gmc. *raikijanau, perhaps from PIE base *reig- "to stretch out" (cf. Skt. rjyati "he stretches himself," riag "torture" (by racking); Gk. oregein

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"to reach, extend;" Lith. raizius "to stretch oneself;" O.Ir. rigim "I stretch"), related to base *reg- "to rule, to lead straight, to put right" (see regal). Shakespeare uses the now-obsolete past tense form raught (O.E. ræhte). Meaning "arrive at" is early 14c.; that of "succeed in influencing" is from 1660s. The noun is first recorded 1520s; earliest use is of stretches of water. Reach-me-down "ready-made" (of clothes) is recorded from 1862, from notion of being on the rack in a finished state.

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American Heritage

Idioms & Phrases

reach

In addition to the idiom beginning with reach, also see boardinghouse reach; get to (reach) first base; in reach.

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beam reach broad reach close reach crest culminate extend

Idioms & Phrases

reach

boardinghouse reach

get to (reach) first base

in reach

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