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Scan

//skæn// noun, verb

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A close investigation.; Of written things, a careful reading.
  2. 2
    the act of scanning; systematic examination of a prescribed region wordnet
  3. 3
    A close investigation.; Of written things, a cursory reading: a skim.
  4. 4
    an image produced by scanning wordnet
  5. 5
    An instance of scanning.

    "The operators vacated the room during the scan."

Show 2 more definitions
  1. 6
    The result or output of a scanning process.

    "The doctors looked at the scans and made a diagnosis."

  2. 7
    A higher-order function that applies a binary operation to a sequence of values, starting with an accumulator, and returns a new sequence with the results.
Verb
  1. 1
    To examine sequentially, carefully, or critically; to scrutinize; to behold closely. transitive

    "She scanned the passage carefully but could not find what she was looking for."

  2. 2
    obtain data from magnetic tapes or other digital sources wordnet
  3. 3
    To examine sequentially, carefully, or critically; to scrutinize; to behold closely.; To inspect, analyse or go over, often to find something. transitive

    "to scan the hard drive for errors"

  4. 4
    read metrically wordnet
  5. 5
    To look about for; to look over quickly. transitive
Show 11 more definitions
  1. 6
    make a wide, sweeping search of wordnet
  2. 7
    To look about for; to look over quickly.; To perform lexical analysis; to tokenize. transitive
  3. 8
    move a light beam over; in electronics, to reproduce an image wordnet
  4. 9
    To create an image of something with the use of a scanner. transitive

    "to scan a photograph"

  5. 10
    examine hastily wordnet
  6. 11
    To read with an electronic device. transitive

    "to scan a barcode"

  7. 12
    examine minutely or intensely wordnet
  8. 13
    To mount by steps; to go through with step by step. obsolete, transitive

    "But ere these matchless heights I dare to scan, / There is a spot should not be pass'd in vain,— / Morat ! the proud, the patriot field ! where man / May gaze on ghastly trophies of the slain,[…]"

  9. 14
    conform to a metrical pattern wordnet
  10. 15
    To read or mark so as to show a specific metre. transitive

    "In such cases as these, almost any one with a good ear will "scan" the verse correctly enough without instruction. It is not proposed to give here a list of Shakspere's slurred and contracted words; […]"

  11. 16
    To conform to a metrical structure. intransitive

    "You're right, sir, it doesn't scan very well in the English, but in the Gaelic it's sheer poetry. Have you the Gaelic?"

Etymology

Etymology 1

From late Middle English scanne (“to mark off verse to show metrical structure”), from earlier scanden, from Late Latin scandere (“to scan verse”), from Classical Latin scandō (“I climb, rise, mount”), from Proto-Indo-European *skend- (“to jump, dart, climb, scale, scan”).

Etymology 2

From late Middle English scanne (“to mark off verse to show metrical structure”), from earlier scanden, from Late Latin scandere (“to scan verse”), from Classical Latin scandō (“I climb, rise, mount”), from Proto-Indo-European *skend- (“to jump, dart, climb, scale, scan”).

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