étend

Étend is the third-person singular present indicative form of the French verb étendre, meaning to extend, to stretch, to spread, or to lay out. It can describe physical actions (extending a fabric, stretching an arm), spatial breadth (the land or a horizon that extends), the widening of influence or reach (a country extending its authority), or the prolongation of time or opportunity (extending a deadline). The verb also appears in its reflexive form as se étendre, meaning to stretch out, to spread over an area, or to cover a range.

Etymology and related forms: Étendre comes from Old French estendre, ultimately from the Latin extendere, “to stretch out.” The present tense forms reflect its irregular conjugation pattern compared with regular -re verbs. The past participle is étendu, used with auxiliary avoir in compound tenses (j'ai étendu) and with être in passive or reflexive uses (se vent étendu).

Conjugation and usage notes: In the present tense, the forms are j'étends, tu étends, il étend, nous étendons, vous étendez, ils étendent. The pronunciation centers on the stem étend- with the final endings varying by person. Other tenses include étendis, étendait in the imperfect, étendrai in the future, and j’étendis in the passé simple. The verb spans senses from concrete actions (étendre une nappe sur une table) to abstract extensions (étendre son influence, étendre une période).

Examples:

- Il étend la nappe sur la table. (He extends the tablecloth across the table.)

- La frontière s’étend sur des centaines de kilomètres. (The border stretches for hundreds of kilometers.)

- Nous avons étendu la durée du contrat. (We extended the duration of the contract.)

- Elle s’étend sur le canapé. (She stretches out on the sofa.)

See also: s’étendre, étendue (noun form), extendere in Latin-based cognates.