Distance is the amount of space between two things. If your house is three miles from school, that's the distance you travel each morning. If you're standing across the playground from a friend, there's a distance of maybe fifty feet between you.

We measure distance in units like inches, feet, miles, or kilometers. A marathon runner covers a distance of 26.2 miles. An astronaut might travel the enormous distance from Earth to the Moon: about 240,000 miles. Scientists measure distances between stars in light-years, the distance light travels in a year, because regular miles become impossibly large numbers.

The word also describes emotional separation between people. When friends have an argument and start avoiding each other, you might notice a distance growing between them. Someone acting cold or unfriendly is keeping their distance. A character in a book might distance herself from her old friends after moving to a new town.

In sports, distance running means long races like the mile or 5K, as opposed to sprints. A baseball player's throw has both speed and distance. You can also distance yourself from something you don't want to be associated with: a student might distance themself from a prank they had nothing to do with.