elongate

Elongate is a verb meaning to make something longer or to become stretched in length. It can also function as an adjective describing something that is longer or more extended in shape, such as an elongated body. The term derives from Latin elongare, from elongus “long,” with the -ate suffix common to verbs indicating causing or making.

In scientific contexts, elongation refers to changes that increase length. In biology, cells or tissues may elongate during growth or development, contributing to organ formation and body plan establishment. Plant cells often elongate as part of overall plant growth, and muscle fibers can become longer as organisms develop or adapt. In microbiology, elongation describes the phase of cell growth in which cells increase in length prior to division.

In materials science and engineering, elongation is a measurable property known as elongation at break or percent elongation. It quantifies ductility by expressing the percent increase in length a material undergoes before failure under tensile loading. Higher elongation indicates greater ability to stretch without breaking.

In linguistics and phonetics, elongation refers to lengthening of sounds, such as vowels or consonants. In languages that contrast sound length, vowel or consonant length can affect meaning. In other domains, elongated shapes describe objects with greater length relative to width, such as fibers, blades, or anatomical structures.

Overall, elongation captures the concept of length increase across biology, materials science, linguistics, and geometry, conveying both processes that extend length and the resulting extended forms.