What does "scan" mean?
A close investigation.; Of written things, a careful reading.
Scan
/skæn/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A close investigation.; Of written things, a careful reading.
- Grammar: scan is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: alliterate, analysis, assonate, audit.
- Useful contrasts: clinical exam, detailed analysis, discard.
- Usage evidence: As soon as I can get my son to scan our family photos, I'll upload some of them to our website.
How to use "scan"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "scan" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "scan" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "scan" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "scan" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "scan" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "alliterate" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "scan", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A close investigation.; Of written things, a careful reading.
- 2 the act of scanning; systematic examination of a prescribed region wordnet
- 3 A close investigation.; Of written things, a cursory reading: a skim.
- 4 an image produced by scanning wordnet
- 5 An instance of scanning.
"The operators vacated the room during the scan."
Show 2 more definitions
- 6 The result or output of a scanning process.
"The doctors looked at the scans and made a diagnosis."
- 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 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 obtain data from magnetic tapes or other digital sources wordnet
- 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 read metrically wordnet
- 5 To look about for; to look over quickly. transitive
Show 11 more definitions
- 6 make a wide, sweeping search of wordnet
- 7 To look about for; to look over quickly.; To perform lexical analysis; to tokenize. transitive
- 8 move a light beam over; in electronics, to reproduce an image wordnet
- 9 To create an image of something with the use of a scanner. transitive
"to scan a photograph"
- 10 examine hastily wordnet
- 11 To read with an electronic device. transitive
"to scan a barcode"
- 12 examine minutely or intensely wordnet
- 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,[…]"
- 14 conform to a metrical pattern wordnet
- 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; […]"
- 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?"
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"As soon as I can get my son to scan our family photos, I'll upload some of them to our website."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "scan"?
Common synonyms include: alliterate, analysis, assonate, audit, autopsy, block out.
How do you use "scan" in a sentence?
As soon as I can get my son to scan our family photos, I'll upload some of them to our website.
How do you pronounce "scan"?
Pronounced /skæn/.
Etymology
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”).