Scan (Verb)
Meaning 1
Move a light beam over; in electronics, to reproduce an image.
Classification
Verbs of walking, flying, swimming.
Examples
- The doctor used an ultrasound to scan the unborn baby's position inside the womb.
- They used a handheld scanner to scan the barcodes on the items they were purchasing.
- Lasers are used in many manufacturing processes to scan and track objects on the production line.
- The security guard had to scan the attendees at the concert to ensure no prohibited items were brought in.
- The photocopier began to scan the document, reproducing an exact image on the new sheet of paper.
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Meaning 2
Examine hastily; "She scanned the newspaper headlines while waiting for the taxi".
Classification
Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling.
Examples
- The detective scanned the crime scene for any clues that might lead to the perpetrator.
- She scanned the shelves for the desired book but couldn't find it anywhere.
- He scanned the document quickly to grasp its general content before signing.
- The tourists scanned the map of the city trying to find their bearings.
- She scanned the menu looking for a suitable dish that fit her dietary restrictions.
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Meaning 3
Conform to a metrical pattern.
Classification
Verbs of being, having, spatial relations.
Examples
- The phrase she invented was meant to scan perfectly with the upbeat rhythm of the song.
- Unfortunately, some of the lines in the poem wouldn't scan properly unless rewritten entirely.
- It took the poet several attempts to ensure his verse would scan with the correct meter.
- The editors made sure the musician's lyrics would scan before adding them to the official release.
- Although the revised line improved meaning, it still didn't scan according to the desired meter.
Meaning 4
Obtain data from magnetic tapes or other digital sources; "This dictionary can be read by the computer".
Classification
Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting.
Examples
- The software will scan the entire database to extract relevant information.
- The program is designed to scan digital documents and convert them into readable text.
- Before compiling the report, the system will scan the raw data from the magnetic tapes.
- Researchers used special equipment to scan ancient manuscripts digitized on CDs.
- The computer can scan the electronic archives and retrieve specific files.
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Meaning 5
Examine minutely or intensely; "the surgeon scanned the X-ray".
Classification
Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling.
Examples
- The customs officer scanned the passport for any signs of tampering.
- The researcher carefully scanned the data for patterns or correlations.
- The editor scanned the manuscript for grammatical errors.
- The astronomer scanned the night sky for a glimpse of the rare comet.
- The radiologist scanned the MRI results for any indication of disease.
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Meaning 6
Read metrically; "scan verses".
Classification
Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing.
Examples
- The professor asked her student to scan the poem's lines and identify the iambic rhythm that was used to create a sense of urgency.
- She had to scan the verses of the song to understand the songwriter's message about social justice.
- The teacher taught her class how to scan a Shakespearean sonnet to analyze the poet's use of meter and rhyme.
- To better appreciate the poet's use of language, he learned to scan the verses for variations in meter and line length.
- She found that scanning the lines of the poem helped her to appreciate the music of the poet's words.
Hypernyms
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Meaning 7
Make a wide, sweeping search of; "The beams scanned the night sky".
Classification
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging.
Examples
- The lighthouse beam scanned the horizon for any sign of ships in distress.
- Radar scans the entire area for potential threats and alerts air traffic control.
- The search party's spotlights scanned the forest, searching for any sign of the missing hikers.
- The museum curator scanned the room, taking in the array of priceless artifacts on display.
- Security cameras scanned the grounds, providing constant surveillance of the facility.