pan out

verb

1. informal,  (intr, adverb) to work out; turn out; result

Idioms and Phrases

Turn out well, succeed, as in If I don't pan out as a musician, I can always go back to school. This expression alludes to washing gold from gravel in a pan. [Mid-1800s]

Example Sentences

Eloy Ortiz Oakley, president of College Futures Foundation, which commissioned the study, said that its aim is to help community colleges “better understand how the promise of economic mobility ... is panning out or not.”

From Los Angeles Times

However it pans out, Mitchell has options at his disposal.

From BBC

That's still a wise mindset when thinking about how the rest of this group might pan out - confidence laced with caution, positivity laced with prudence.

From BBC

From the perspective of regular playing time, it did not pan out how he would have hoped, and Sterling was keen for more thinking time before any potential move this summer.

From BBC

“I’d like to be here for my career, but if things don’t pan out, obviously I might have to move in a different direction and do what’s best for me,” Reese told the Tribune.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• turn out