the speed or rate at which something moves, happens, or changes
The pace of modern technology can be hard to keep up with.
She ran at a comfortable pace during her morning jog through the park.
✦ From Middle English pas, pace, from Old French pas “step, stride,” from Latin passus “step, pace.” Sense extended to “speed” in the 16th century.
one step when walking, or the distance covered by a single step
He took three careful paces toward the edge of the cliff.
She marked the garden row by counting her paces.
✦ From Middle English pas, pace meaning “step,” inherited from Old French pas.
to walk back and forth repeatedly, especially because you are nervous or thinking deeply
Worried about the exam results, he paced up and down the hallway.
The expectant father paced the hospital waiting room.
✦ Derived from the noun “pace,” first recorded as a verb meaning “to stride back and forth” in the late 15th century.
to control or measure the speed at which something happens or someone moves
The coach paced the runners so they would not start too fast.
During the lecture, she tried to pace her speech to match the slides.
✦ Extended from the idea of measuring distance by steps to measuring or controlling speed, first recorded in the 17th century.
used to politely disagree with or contradict someone, meaning “with all due respect to”
Pace my brother, I believe this restaurant is excellent.
The planet, pace earlier astronomers, revolves around the sun.
✦ From Latin pace, ablative of pax “peace,” used in scholarly English since the late 17th century to introduce polite disagreement.
the amount of room that is available for something or someone
There isn't enough space in the fridge for the cake.
Mira moved the chairs to create more space for dancing.
the vast area beyond Earth’s atmosphere where stars, planets, and other celestial bodies exist
At night, Leo loves to stare into space and count the stars.
Astronauts travel into space to conduct experiments.
to arrange or place things at particular distances from each other
Please space the rows of plants 30 centimeters apart.
He carefully spaced the letters so the sign was easy to read.
