a broad, shallow container of metal, usually having sides flaring outward toward the top, used in various forms for frying, baking, washing, etc.
any similar receptacle or part, as the scales of a balance.
the amount a pan holds or can hold; panful.
a pan of shelled peas.
any of various open or closed containers used in industrial or mechanical processes.
a container in which silver ores are ground and amalgamated.
a container in which gold or other heavy, valuable metals are separated from gravel or other substances by agitation with water.
a drifting piece of flat, thin ice, as formed on a shore or bay.
a natural depression in the ground, as one containing water, mud, or mineral salts.
a similar depression made artificially, as for evaporating salt water to make salt.
(in old guns) the depressed part of the lock, holding the priming.
Also panning an unfavorable review, critique, or appraisal.
The show got one rave and three pans.
Slang. the face.
Informal. to criticize severely, as in a review of a play.
to wash (gravel, sand, etc.) in a pan to separate gold or other heavy, valuable metal.
to separate (gold or other heavy, valuable metal) from gravel or sand in this way.
to cook or bake in a pan.
to wash gravel, sand, etc., in a pan in seeking gold or the like.
to yield gold or the like, as gravel washed in a pan.
to film, photograph, or televise something with the camera fixed in place and pivoted horizontally left or right, in order to keep a moving person or object in view or to capture a wide view.
They usually pan from one end of the playing field to the other during the opening of the football game.
(of a camera) to be pivoted horizontally to the right or left from a fixed place in order to keep a moving person or object in view or to capture a wide view.
The cameras panned occasionally during the scene.
to pivot (a camera) on its horizontal axis in order to follow a moving person or thing, or to capture an extended view.
to pan the camera across the scene.
to photograph, film, or televise (a scene, moving character, etc.) by pivoting the camera on its horizontal axis.
pan the skyline.
Audio. to direct (a signal output) to one of the speakers in a sound system, to a point between speakers, or, especially, through a continuum from one side to the other to create the impression that the source is moving.
They gradually panned the vocal recording from the right to the left channel as the song progressed.
the act of pivoting a camera, which is fixed in place, to the left or right.
Also called panning shot. the filmed shot resulting from this.
a major vertical division of a wall.
a nogged panel of half-timber construction.
the leaf of the betel.
a substance, especially betel nut or a betel-nut mixture, used for chewing.
the leaf of the betel tree
a preparation of this leaf which is chewed, together with betel nuts and lime, in India and the East Indies
a wide metal vessel used in cooking
( in combination )
saucepan
Also called: panful. the amount such a vessel will hold
any of various similar vessels used esp in industry, as for boiling liquids
a dish used by prospectors, esp gold prospectors, for separating a valuable mineral from the gravel or earth containing it by washing and agitating
either of the two dishlike receptacles on a balance
Also called: lavatory pan. the bowl of a lavatory
a natural or artificial depression in the ground where salt can be obtained by the evaporation of brine
a natural depression containing water or mud
the indented top from an oil drum used as the treble drum in a steel band
a small ice floe
a slang word for face
a small cavity containing priming powder in the locks of old guns
a hard substratum of soil
short for pan loaf
to wash (gravel) in a pan to separate particles of (valuable minerals) from it
(of gravel) to yield valuable minerals by this process
informal (tr) to criticize harshly
the critics panned his new play
all or every
panchromatic
including or relating to all parts or members
Pan-African
pantheistic
What does pan- mean? Pan- is a combining form used like a prefix meaning “all.” It is often used in a variety of scientific and technical terms, particularly in pathology. Pan- comes from the Greek pâs, meaning “all.” The term pancreas, a gland in the stomach, is ultimately related to this same Greek root. So do panacea and many other words English gets from Greek. The equivalent form derived from Latin is omni-, as in omnivore, which comes from Latin omnis, “all.”What are variants of pan-?Pan- is a variant of panto-. Another variant of pan- is pant-, as in pantalgia. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use articles on pant- and panto-.
According to legend, Pan was the source of scary noises in the wilderness at night. Fright at these noises was called “panic.”
Pan's musical instrument was a set of reed pipes, the “pipes of Pan.”
First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English panne; cognate with Dutch pan, German Pfanne, Old Norse panna; further origin uncertain, perhaps from assumed Vulgar Latin patna, panna “pan,” from Latin patena, patina “shallow dish, shallow pan, stewpan,” from Greek patánē “dish, flat dish.” Pan, in the sense “face,” is an Americanism first recorded in 1920–25; see origin at paten ( def. )
First recorded in 1920–25; shortening of panorama
First recorded in 1735–45; from French, Middle French; see origin at pane
First recorded in 1610–20; from Hindi pān; compare Pali, Prakrit paṇṇa, Sanskrit parṇa “leaf, betel leaf”
First recorded in 1935–40; by shortening
< Greek pan- combining form of pâs (neuter pân ) all, every, pân everything
A pan can be a cooking utensil, a negative opinion, or a sweeping camera shot. You cook eggs in a pan, but as a film critic you might pan a new docudrama for poor editing and overuse of pan shots. A pan is a shallow metal object that you use to cook food. It can also be a verb indicating you're expressing a negative view. To pan a performance, book, or movie is to say that you think it stunk. If all the critics pan something, sales usually go down, but not always. To pan a film or video camera is to move it from left to right or right to left in a smooth motion.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The miracle everyone pulls off is making a poisonous relationship dryly hilarious, even if every civilized exchange eventually becomes a figurative frying pan flying through the air.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
A small Australian biotech started to test it 15 years ago as a treatment for retinitis pigmentosa, a group of rare genetic eye diseases, although that research did not pan out.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026
Take this perfect steak, she says, and no—don’t prepare it in the conventional way, searing in a hot pan and finishing in the oven.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
Add a tablespoon of soy sauce and a tablespoon of chicken stock or water, cover the pan and cook.
From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026
I scooped more mud from the sluice and swirled it around in my pan.
From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff
The wreckage of a Pan American Airways plane has been found 74 years after it plunged into the Atlantic Ocean in a crash that prompted mandatory airline safety briefings.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
It opened in late June in a former Pan Am building near some budget airport hotels.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
Grisetti’s regional credits also include “Spamalot” in Las Vegas, “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” at the Reprise Theatre, “Beauty & the Beast” and “Peter Pan Goes Wrong” in La Mirada.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
Higher ground like Robinswood Hill - which is just south of Gloucester city centre - and Pan Tod Beacon, near Drybrook in the Forest of Dean, will also provide a stunning view.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
Grover announced that he'd be able to spend the rest of the summer with us before resuming his quest for Pan.
From "The Sea of Monsters" by Rick Riordan
Any of the salmon, halibut, scallops and seafood behind the glass display can be poached, pan- or deep-fried for $3 upon request.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 9, 2018
These drugs are pan- genotypic -- meaning they are effective across the different types of hepatitis C. They could become the backbone for an Interferon-free combination.
From BusinessWeek ● Feb. 20, 2012
When the soldiers have crawled out of their graves and the news of the miracle is broadcast over the earth, pan- demonium is loosed.
From Time Magazine Archive
His decisiveness appeals to those Arabs who dream of pan- Arab unification and worship Arab dignity.
From Time Magazine Archive
Place in a broiler and broil, or place in a "frying" pan and pan- broil, turning often.
From School and Home Cooking by Greer, Carlotta Cherryholmes
A high school friend, Michael Shapot, 62, hit the nail on the proverbial head: “Call me Peter Pan. My plan is to never grow up and need senior living.”
From Washington Post ● Feb. 7, 2020
He kept saying, “I’m Peter Pan. I’m living a Peter Pan life.”
From Washington Post ● Aug. 26, 2016
From an ancient Chinese astrological table and the P'u Pan. the necromancer's divining board.
From Time Magazine Archive
"Pan. If you were the Lord of the Forest, you wouldn't give a job to someone, tell them to give all possible aid and succor, unless you liked them, would you?"
From "Stardust" by Neil Gaiman
“Yeah. I reckon we’ve got to do it, Pan. We’ll go up there and we’ll search for Dust, and when we’ve found it we’ll know what to do.”
From "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman
Bedrock Materials, which was making sodium-ion batteries for EVs, also closed up shop, citing a bet on a lithium supply shortage that hadn’t panned out.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
What the Celtics got back was the oft-injured 36-year-old Paul George and a pair of first-round picks: a trade widely panned as one of the most disastrous in recent NBA memory.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 3, 2026
Some recent examples include the critically panned Netflix take on “Persuasion” starring Dakota Johnson, and Hallmark’s 2024 “Sense & Sensibility,” which despite some buzz for its predominantly Black cast, failed to find an audience.
From Salon ● Jun. 25, 2026
Still, there are some top holdings that haven’t panned out this year.
From Barron's ● Jun. 22, 2026
But so far, the feeling had never really panned out.
From "Raymie Nightingale" by Kate DiCamillo
Key to how Morgan Stanley sees things panning out is the non-consensus view of the investment bank’s economists who believe the Fed will stay on hold in 2026.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026
Motor sport and trade publications are panning the rule.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 13, 2026
But this is not how Isak envisaged his first year at Anfield panning out following his protracted £125m move from Newcastle United last September.
From BBC ● Jun. 2, 2026
Investors are panning upbeat results from Western Digital and Sandisk after massive one-year stock rallies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026
Ivan’s eyes darted to the side, panning for an escape route, but Sigurd was faster.
From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
