'nationwide' originates from the combination of 'nation' and 'wide', where 'nation' refers to a large body of people united by common descent, history, culture, or language, inhabiting a particular country or territory, and 'wide' means extending over a large area.

'Nationwide' was formed by combining 'nation' and 'wide' in modern English to describe something that spans the entire nation.

Initially, it meant 'extending over a large area of a nation', and this meaning has largely remained the same in modern usage.