Antonyms for scan


Grammar : Verb
Spell : skan
Phonetic Transcription : skæn


Definition of scan

Origin :
  • late 14c., "mark off verse in metric feet," from Late Latin scandere "to scan verse," originally, in classical Latin, "to climb, rise, mount" (the connecting notion is of the rising and falling rhythm of poetry), from PIE *skand- "to spring, leap, climb" (cf. Sanskrit skandati "hastens, leaps, jumps;" Greek skandalon "stumbling block;" Middle Irish sescaind "he sprang, jumped," sceinm "a bound, jump").
  • Missing -d in English is probably from confusion with suffix -ed (see lawn (n.1)). Sense of "look at closely, examine minutely (as one does when counting metrical feet in poetry)" first recorded 1540s. The (opposite) sense of "look over quickly, skim" is first attested 1926. Related: Scanned; scanning.
  • verb look over, scrutinize lightly
Example sentences :
  • We summon all our knowledge of the past and we scan all signs of the future.
  • Extract from : « United States Presidents' Inaugural Speeches » by Various
  • Kirkwood shook his head, turning to scan the seascape with a gloomy gaze.
  • Extract from : « The Black Bag » by Louis Joseph Vance
  • No sentiment of curiosity impelled them to raise their heads and scan the tree.
  • Extract from : « Abbe Mouret's Transgression » by Emile Zola
  • Then he looked at me, and his brooding eyes seemed to scan my face.
  • Extract from : « The Strolling Saint » by Raphael Sabatini
  • As he sat thus, I had time to mark him well, and scan every detail of his appearance.
  • Extract from : « Confessions Of Con Cregan » by Charles James Lever
  • I had ample time to scan his features and canvass their every lineament.
  • Extract from : « Charles O'Malley, The Irish Dragoon, Volume 1 (of 2) » by Charles Lever
  • Maria gave her the opera-glasses and she raised them to scan the house.
  • Extract from : « Olive in Italy » by Moray Dalton
  • The fire-light enabled me to scan the appearance of my new acquaintance.
  • Extract from : « Among the Pines » by James R. Gilmore
  • The viewscreen tracked it for an instant, then continued its scan.
  • Extract from : « The Players » by Everett B. Cole
  • "Certainly its name is Flore," he said: yet he continued to scan it with a puzzled eye.
  • Extract from : « In Kings' Byways » by Stanley J. Weyman

Synonyms for scan

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019