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Meaning & use

breadth

noun·Academic

Last updated

UK/bredθ/
US/bredθ/

Meanings

  1. noununcountable

    The distance from one side of something to the other, measured across its shorter dimension.

    Grammar: Usually uncountable: the breadth of the river.

    Patterns

    • the breadth of something
    • in breadth

    The breadth of the table is about three feet.

    They measured the length and breadth of the field.

    The bridge is only ten feet in breadth.

  2. noununcountable

    The wide range of different things that something includes or covers.

    Grammar: Usually followed by of: the breadth of her knowledge.

    Patterns

    • the breadth of something
    • breadth of experience

    I was amazed by the breadth of her reading.

    The course covers a great breadth of topics.

    The breadth of the menu means everyone can find something.

Common combinations

breadth of knowledge
His breadth of knowledge made him a good quiz partner.
breadth and depth
The program offers both breadth and depth.
breadth of experience
She brings a breadth of experience to the role.
the length and breadth of
They traveled the length and breadth of the country.
hair's breadth
The car missed us by a hair's breadth.

Synonyms and how they differ

width
Width is the everyday word for physical measurement across, while breadth is more formal and also works for abstract range.
range
Range lists the span from low to high, whereas breadth stresses how widely something covers different areas.
scope
Scope refers to what is included or affected by a project, so it is about limits, while breadth is about how wide the content is.
extent
Extent is a more general word for the size or degree of something, and it is less about width than breadth.

Opposites

narrowness

Word family

broad adjective
wide, covering many things
broaden verb
to make wider or more varied
broadly adverb
in a general or wide way
broadness noun
the quality of being wide

Commonly confused: breadth or breath? breadth or width?

breadth vs breath

Breath is the air you take in and out, with a shorter vowel and no d, so do not swap it with breadth.

breadth vs width

Width is the plain measurement and breadth is more formal and often figurative.

Practice

The museum impressed visitors with the ___ of its collection, which spans five centuries.

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