fan out
phrasal verb
fanned out; fanning out; fans out
: to spread apart or to cause (something) to spread apart
The police fanned out across the park in search of the suspect.
He fanned out his fingers.
Examples of fan out in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In some cases, says Gargano, Fox News sales executives fan out to make a pitch directly to a company’s founder.
—
Brian Steinberg, Variety, 29 Sep. 2025
On Wednesday, the group welcomed a training class of Chase The Vote representatives, who will fan out into communities to register voters and drive turnout.
—Samantha-Jo Roth, The Washington Examiner, 25 Sep. 2025
Despite the downpour Thursday night, Barstow police, fire crews and volunteers fanned out to look for the missing vehicle and its occupants, Barstow police said.
—Dennis Romero, NBC news, 20 Sep. 2025
In the days after violence, army personnel fanned out across the country.
—Omkar Khandekar, NPR, 20 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fan out
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Brian Steinberg, Variety, 29 Sep. 2025
On Wednesday, the group welcomed a training class of Chase The Vote representatives, who will fan out into communities to register voters and drive turnout.
—Samantha-Jo Roth, The Washington Examiner, 25 Sep. 2025
Despite the downpour Thursday night, Barstow police, fire crews and volunteers fanned out to look for the missing vehicle and its occupants, Barstow police said.
—Dennis Romero, NBC news, 20 Sep. 2025
In the days after violence, army personnel fanned out across the country.
—Omkar Khandekar, NPR, 20 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fan out
Cite this Entry
“Fan out.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fan%20out. Accessed 3 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share