While election almost certain to be decided by swing states, pollsters explain why growth in national polls is meaningful


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  • Buffalox@lemmy.world
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    9 hours ago

    No it’s stupid because stretching something generally means by using less like stretching resources by using less, or stretching a band by pulling it making it thinner.
    That’s why it’s stupid because it contains none of the original meaning.
    I can figure out in sports it probably comes from stretching out (muscles), like giving it a bit of extra effort. But the headline doesn’t work in that context either.

    So in short, it’s a stupid use that is erroneously used out of the original context and meaning where it had a common denominator that made sense.
    There is absolutely zero stretching going on in Harris increasing her lead.

    Most languages have inconsistencies, but sometimes English seems to have more inconsistencies than any other language I know, and they are almost completely void of logic.

    • fartemoji@lemmy.world
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      7 hours ago

      If you stretch a rubber band it gets longer. The two ends of the band get farther apart. This might be easier to imagine with a broken rubber band rather than a loop. If you stretch a lead, whether in sports, politics, or anything else, the gap gets larger. The two sides get farther apart.

      • Buffalox@lemmy.world
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        7 hours ago

        OK a stretch can also be a distance like: “a stretch of road.” I suppose that somewhat ties it together.
        We actually have the equivalent of stretch of road and to stretch something being similar words, but we would never say stretching a lead.