expansive

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Related to expansive: expansive cement, expansive soil

expansive

comprehensive; extensive; effusive; sociable, extroverted, outgoing, unreserved: She has an expansive personality.

Not to be confused with:

expensive – very high-priced; costly: an expensive gown

ex·pan·sive

(ĭk-spăn′sĭv)

adj.

1. Capable of expanding or tending to expand.

2. Broad in size or extent; comprehensive: expansive police powers.

3. Open and communicative; talkative or effusive: Wine made the guest expansive.

4. Grand in scale: an expansive lifestyle.

ex·pan′sive·ly adv.

ex·pan′sive·ness, ex′pan·siv′i·ty (ĕk′spăn-sĭv′ĭ-tē) n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

expansive

(ɪkˈspænsɪv)

adj

1. able or tending to expand or characterized by expansion

2. wide; extensive

3. friendly, open, or talkative: an expansive person.

4. grand or extravagant: an expansive way of life.

5. (Psychology) psychiatry lacking restraint in the expression of feelings, esp in having delusions of grandeur or being inclined to overvalue oneself or one's work

exˈpansively adv

exˈpansiveness n

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

ex•pan•sive

(ɪkˈspæn sɪv)

adj.

1. having a wide range or extent; extensive.

2. cordially welcoming; effusive: an expansive host.

3. tending to expand or capable of expanding.

4. causing expansion: the expansive force of heat.

[1645–55]

ex•pan′sive•ly, adv.

ex•pan′sive•ness, n.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Adj.	1.	expansive - able or tending to expand or characterized by expansion; "Expansive materials"; "the expansive force of fire" unexpansive - showing no tendency to expand; "unexpansive bodies"
	2.	expansive - of behavior that is impressive and ambitious in scale or scope; "an expansive lifestyle"; "in the grand manner"; "collecting on a grand scale"; "heroic undertakings" grand, heroic impressive - making a strong or vivid impression; "an impressive ceremony"
	3.	expansive - marked by exaggerated feelings of euphoria and delusions of grandeur psychiatry, psychological medicine, psychopathology - the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders euphoric - exaggerated feeling of well-being or elation
	4.	expansive - friendly and open and willing to talk; "wine made the guest expansive" talkative communicatory, communicative - able or tending to communicate; "was a communicative person and quickly told all she knew"- W.M.Thackeray

expansive

adjective

1. wide, broad, extensive, spacious, sweeping an expansive grassy play area

2. comprehensive, extensive, broad, wide, widespread, wide-ranging, thorough, inclusive, far-reaching, voluminous, all-embracing the book's expansive coverage of this period

3. talkative, open, friendly, outgoing, free, easy, warm, sociable, genial, affable, communicative, effusive, garrulous, loquacious, unreserved He became more expansive as he began to relax.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

expansive

adjective

1. Large in expanse:

ample, broad, extensive, spacious.

2. Covering a wide scope:

all-around, all-inclusive, all-round, broad, broad-spectrum, comprehensive, extended, extensive, far-ranging, far-reaching, general, global, inclusive, large, overall, sweeping, wide-ranging, wide-reaching, widespread.

3. Disposed to be open, sociable, and talkative:

communicable, communicative, extraverted, extroverted, gregarious, outgoing, unreserved.

Translations

expansif

espansivo cordiale

expansive

[ɪksˈpænsɪv] ADJ

1. (= affable) → comunicativo, sociable, expansivo (liter)
he was becoming more expansive as he relaxed → se volvía más comunicativo or sociable a medida que se relajaba
he was in an expansive mood → estaba muy comunicativo or sociable

2. (= broad) [area, room] → extenso; [view] → extenso, amplio
with an expansive gesture he indicated the wonderful view → abrió los brazos señalando la fantástica vista

3. (= expanding) [economy, phase] → expansivo

4. (Phys) → expansivo

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

expansive

[ɪkˈspænsɪv] adj

(= broad) [area] → étendu(e)

[person] (= open) → expansif/ive
to be in expansive mood → être d'humeur joviale

(= growing) [economy] → expansif/ive

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

expansive

adj

(= communicative) person, mood → mitteilsam; welcome → herzlich; to be in an expansive mood → in gesprächiger Stimmung sein

(form: = broad, extensive) area, lawn → ausgedehnt; view → weit; gesture → ausladend; role → umfassend

(= expanding, growing) economy → expandierend; business → expansiv; expansive phase → Expansionsphase f; to have expansive ambitions (for something) → Expansionspläne (für etw) haben

(Phys) → expansiv

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

expansive

[ɪksˈpænsɪv] adj (fig) (sociable) → espansivo/a (frm) (extensive) → considerevole

References in classic literature ?

So that when I shall hereafter detail to you all the specialities and concentrations of potency everywhere lurking in this expansive monster; when I shall show you some of his more inconsiderable braining feats; I trust you will have renounced all ignorant incredulity, and be ready to abide by this; that though the Sperm Whale stove a passage through the Isthmus of Darien, and mixed the Atlantic with the Pacific, you would not elevate one hair of your eye-brow.

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Perhaps if they were more humorous they would not be so true to the British life and character present in them in the whole length and breadth of its expansive commonplaceness.

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Whether it was, too, that his head being shaved, his forehead was drawn out in freer and brighter relief, and looked more expansive than it otherwise would, this I will not venture to decide; but certain it was his head was phrenologically an excellent one.

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To these were added an aspiring spirit that always looked upwards; a genius bold, fertile, and expansive; a sagacity quick to grasp and convert every circumstance to its advantage, and a singular and never wavering confidence of signal success.

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On two points only she was not expansive. She did not betray fully what still rankled in her mind as Tom's great offence,--the insults he had heaped on Philip.

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This time the Frenchman was absent from the meal, and the General seemed to be in a more expansive vein.

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Moreover, you are well aware that, in general terms, the resisting power of cannon and the expansive force of gunpowder are practically unlimited.

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My heart sank within me to behold that stately mansion in the midst of its expansive grounds.

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So he was, in a certain point of view--in his expansive intentions.

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In some parts, slight curls of smoke emitted a sulphurous smell, proving that the internal fires had lost nothing of their expansive powers, though, having climbed a high acclivity, I could see no volcano for a radius of several miles.

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Athos alone from time to time raised his expansive brow; a flash kindled in his eyes, and a bitter smile passed over his lips, then, like his comrades, he sank again into reverie.