expansion

[ik-span-shuh n] /ɪkˈspæn ʃən/
noun
1.
the act or process of expanding.
2.
the state or quality of being expanded.
3.
the amount or degree of expanding.
4.
an expanded, dilated, or enlarged portion or form of a thing:
The present article is an expansion of one he wrote last year.
5.
anything spread out; expanse.
6.
Mathematics.
  1. the development at length of an expression indicated in a contracted form, as a 2 + 2 ab + b 2 for the expression (a + b) 2 .
  2. any mathematical series that converges to a function for specified values in the domain of the function, as 1 + x + x 2 + … for 1/(1 − x) when x < 1.
7.
Machinery. that part of the operation of an engine in which the volume of the working medium increases and its pressure decreases.
8.
an increase in economic and industrial activity (opposed to contraction).
Origin
1605-15; < Late Latin expānsiōn- (stem of expānsiō) a spreading out. See expanse, -ion
Related forms
expansional, adjective
antiexpansion, adjective
nonexpansion, noun
overexpansion, noun
preexpansion, noun
reexpansion, noun
self-expansion, noun
superexpansion, noun
Examples from the web for expansion
  • The longer the economy's expansion goes on, the slower productivity growth is bound to be.
  • Growth will be more broad-based, with industrial and agricultural output matching services expansion.
  • In all of those scenarios, there would be less money in the economy that can be used for expansion and growth.
  • More generally, though, the growth of planning is closely tied to the expansion of college and university administrations.
  • The expansion was brought on by the rapid growth of online learning.
  • The rapid growth of the tourism sector over the last decade has resulted in a substantial expansion of other activities.
  • Population and economic growth are examples of a compound-interest expansion.
  • Maybe it seems absurd to propose expansion of early childhood education at a time when budgets are being slashed.
  • The expansion is compounded as in compounded interest your earned with bank deposit.
  • Dark energy, on the other hand, originates from our efforts to understand the observed accelerated expansion of the universe.
British Dictionary definitions for expansion

expansion

/ɪkˈspænʃən/
noun
1.
the act of expanding or the state of being expanded
2.
something expanded; an expanded surface or part
3.
the degree, extent, or amount by which something expands
4.
an increase, enlargement, or development, esp in the activities of a company
5.
(maths)
  1. the form of an expression or function when it is written as the sum or product of its terms
  2. the act or process of determining this expanded form
6.
the part of an engine cycle in which the working fluid does useful work by increasing in volume
7.
the increase in the dimensions of a body or substance when subjected to an increase in temperature, internal pressure, etc
Derived Forms
expansionary, adjective
Word Origin and History for expansion
n.

1610s, "anything spread out;" 1640s, "act of expanding," from French expansion, from Late Latin expansionem (nominative expansio) "a spreading out," noun of action from past participle stem of Latin expandere (see expand).

expansion in Medicine

expansion ex·pan·sion (ĭk-spān'shən)
n.

  1. An increase in size.

  2. The spreading out of a structure, such as a tendon.

expansion in Science
expansion
  (ĭk-spān'shən)   

  1. An increase in the volume of a substance while its mass remains the same. Expansion is usually due to heating. When substances are heated, the molecular bonds between their particles are weakened, and the particles move faster, causing the substance to expand.

  2. A number or other mathematical expression written in an extended form. For example, a2 + 2ab + b2 is the expansion of (a + b)2.