Pronunciation: [spˈanz] (IPA) 
The word "spans" is spelled with the letters S-P-A-N-S. It is pronounced /spænz/ in IPA phonetic transcription. The "s" in "spans" is voiced, meaning that the vocal cords vibrate when producing the sound. The "a" is pronounced as the short vowel sound /æ/. The "n" is also voiced, and the word ends with the consonant sound /z/. "Spans" can refer to a distance, period of time, or the act of stretching or covering something.
The term "spans" can be defined as plural of the noun "span." The word "span" has multiple meanings depending on the context in which it is used. In its most general sense, "span" refers to the extent or range between two points, objects, or time periods. It denotes the distance or duration that something covers or occupies.
In the context of distance, "spans" can refer to the measurement or length between two points, such as the span of a bridge or the span of an arch. It represents the gap or space that is covered by something, such as the span of a bird's wings or the span of someone's outstretched arms.
"Spans" can also describe a period of time, indicating the duration or length between two specific events or moments. For instance, the span of a person's career refers to the entire length of time they have been working in a particular field.
In certain fields like statistics or data analysis, "spans" can refer to a set of values within a specific range. These values constitute a subset of a data set.
Overall, "spans" encompasses a variety of definitions related to distance, time, and measurement. The plural form denotes multiple instances or occurrences of this range or extent between two points, objects, or time periods.
* The statistics data for these misspellings percentages are collected from over 15,411,110 spell check sessions on www.spellchecker.net from Jan 2010 - Jun 2012.
The word "spans" has a varied etymology depending on the specific meaning being referred to.
1. As a noun, "spans" can refer to the measurement of the distance or extent between two points. Its origin can be traced back to the Old Norse word "spann" meaning "a distance between the tips of the thumb and little finger". It later influenced the Middle Low German word "spanne" and the Middle Dutch word "spanne", which both had similar meanings.
2. As a verb, "spans" can refer to the act of reaching or stretching across an area or a period of time. This usage is derived from the Old English word "spannan" meaning "to stretch or extend". It is also related to the Old Norse word "spenna" with the same meaning.
