3
general::
distance
adjectives
a long/great/considerable distance
• The sound of guns seemed a long distance away.
a short distance
• I quickly walked the short distance to the car.
a safe distance
(= enough space to be safe )
• You should keep a safe distance from the car in front.
some distance
(= quite a long distance )
• He heard a scream some distance away.
vast distances
• The aircraft is able to carry huge loads over vast distances.
the stopping/braking distance
(= how far you travel in a car after pressing the brakes )
• What’s the stopping distance at 30 miles an hour?
verbs
travel a great/long etc distance
• In some countries children must travel great distances to school each day.
measure the distance between things
• Now we are able to measure the distances between the planets.
judge distances
(= judge how much space there is between things )
• Animals that hunt can judge distances very well.
phrases
within (easy) walking distance
(= near enough to walk to easily )
• There are lots of restaurants within walking distance.
within travelling/commuting/driving distance of something
(= near enough to make travel to or from a place possible )
• The job was not within travelling distance of my home.
within striking distance of something
(= not far from something, especially something you are going to attack )
• Their troops had advanced to within striking distance of the town.
within spitting distance
informal (= very near something )
• The ball passed within spitting distance of the goal.
put some distance between yourself and somebody/something
(= go quite a long way from them )
• He wanted to put some distance between himself and his pursuers.
transnet.ir
4
general::
noun amount of space between two points ADJ. appreciable, considerable, enormous, fair, good, great, huge, large, long, vast The town is a considerable distance from the coast. It's quite a good distance to the nearest village. The people travel vast distances to find food. | short, small | reasonable | certain, given | average, mean the average distance covered during pursuits by cheetahs | equal | maximum, minimum | optimum | correct, right | exact | full | extra | fixed | finite, infinite | careful, comfortable, convenient, discreet, respectful, safe The cat sat and watched us from a safe distance. | braking, stopping Allow for greater braking distances when pulling a loaded trailer. | geographical, physical These immigrants face problems of geographical distance and cultural isolation. VERB + DISTANCE cover, fly, go, travel, walk The young birds were soon flying distances of 200 feet or more.(figurative) Nobody thought he would last 15 rounds but he went the full distance. | keep I kept a comfortable distance behind the van. | determine, measure | gauge, judge It is very difficult to judge distances in the desert. DISTANCE + NOUN runner, running a long-distance runner PREP. at a ~ (from/of) When launching a kick it is essential to be at the correct distance from your opponent. The town is situated at a distance of twenty miles from Oxford. She followed them at a discreet distance. | from a ~ (of) Visitors can only view the painting from a distance of three metres. | over a ~ (of) The sound can be heard over a distance of more than five miles. | within a ~ children living within a certain distance of the school | ~ away from The house is a short distance away from the bus station. | ~ between What's the distance between London and Edinburgh? | ~ from, ~ to the distance from our house to the school PHRASES a … distance ahead, away, apart, etc. A bomb exploded some distance away. | within commuting/driving/strolling/travelling/wal distance The shops are within walking distance. | within hailing/shouting/sniffing/spitting/striking/ distance The cat was now within striking distance of the duck.(figurative) We came within spitting distance of winning the cup. point a long way away/being far away ADJ. far, middle I could just see the hills in the far distance. | blue (literary) The moors stretched away into the blue distance (= the sky). DISTANCE + NOUN learning The Open University offers a wide range of distance learning programmes. | vision to have good distance vision PREP. at a ~ At a distance it is difficult to make out the detail on the building. | from a ~ We admired the palace from a distance. | in the ~ In the distance was a small village. not being too closely involved ADJ. critical, professional | emotional, psychological, social VERB + DISTANCE keep, maintain She was warned to keep her distance from Charles if she didn't want to get hurt. Sociologists must maintain critical distance from the ideas of society at any particular time. PREP. ~ from He felt a sense of distance from the others. PHRASES a sense of distance
Oxford Collocations Dictionary