distance (distances plural & 3rd person present) (distancing present participle) (distanced past tense & past participle )
1 n-var The distancebetween two points or places is the amount of space between them.
with supp, oft N between pl-n
...the distance between the island and the nearby shore..., Everything is within walking distance...
2 n-uncount When two things are very far apart, you talk about the distance between them.
The distance wouldn't be a problem.
3 adj Distance learning or distance education involves studying at home and sending your work to a college or university, rather than attending the college or university in person.
ADJ n
I'm doing a theology degree by distance learning.
4 n-uncount When you want to emphasize that two people or things do not have a close relationship or are not the same, you can refer to the distancebetween them.
usu N between pl-n (emphasis)
There was a vast distance between psychological clues and concrete proof...
5 n-sing If you can see something in the distance, you can see it, far away from you.
in/into the N
We suddenly saw her in the distance...
6 n-uncount Distance is coolness or unfriendliness in the way that someone behaves towards you.
FORMAL usu with supp (Antonym: closeness)
There were periods of sulking, of pronounced distance, of coldness.
7 verb If you distanceyourself from a person or thing, or if something distances you from them, you feel less friendly or positive towards them, or become less involved with them.
The author distanced himself from some of the comments in his book... V pron-refl from n
Television may actually be distancing the public from the war. V n from n
distanced adj v-link ADJ, usu ADJ from n
Clough felt he'd become too distanced from his fans.
8 If you are at a distance from something, or if you see it or remember it from a distance, you are a long way away from it in space or time.
at/from a distance phrase PHR after v, v-link PHR
The only way I can cope with my mother is at a distance..., Now I can look back on the whole tragedy from a distance of forty years.
9 If you keep your distance from someone or something or keep them at a distance, you do not become involved with them.
keep one's distance phrase V inflects
Jay had always tended to keep his girlfriends at a distance.
10 If you keep your distance from someone or something, you do not get physically close to them. OLD-FASHIONED
keep one's distance phrase V inflects He walked towards the doorway, careful to keep his distance.
long-distance
1 adj Long-distance is used to describe travel between places that are far apart.
ADJ n
Trains are reliable, cheap and best for long-distance journeys.
2 adj Long-distance is used to describe communication that takes place between people who are far apart.
usu ADJ n (Antonym: local)
He received a long-distance phone call from his girlfriend in Colorado.
Long-distance is also an adverb., adv ADV after v
I phoned Nicola long distance to suggest it.
middle distance
1 n-sing If you are looking into themiddle distance, you are looking at a place that is neither near nor far away.
the N, usu into/in the N
He stares detachedly into the middle distance, towards nothing in particular.
2 adj A middle-distance runner is someone who takes part in races of medium length, for example 800 metres.
ADJ n
