2 N‑COUNT A fan is a flat object that you hold in your hand and wave in order to move the air and make yourself feel cooler.
3 VERB If you fan yourself or your face when you are hot, you wave a fan or other flat object in order to make yourself feel cooler. □ [V pron-refl] She would have to wait in the truck, fanning herself with a piece of cardboard. □ [V n] Mo kept bringing me out refreshments and fanning me as it was that hot.
4 N‑COUNT A fan is a piece of electrical or mechanical equipment with blades that go round and round. It keeps a room or machine cool or gets rid of unpleasant smells. □ He cools himself in front of an electric fan. □ …an extractor fan.
5 VERB If you fan a fire, you wave something flat next to it in order to make it burn more strongly. If a wind fans a fire, it blows on it and makes it burn more strongly. □ [V n] During the afternoon, hot winds fan the flames.
6 VERB If someone fans an emotion such as fear, hatred, or passion, they deliberately do things to make people feel the emotion more strongly. □ [V n] He said students were fanning social unrest with their violent protests.
7 to fan the flames → see flame
8 the shit hit the fan → see shit
▸ fan out PHRASAL VERB If a group of people or things fan out , they move forwards away from a particular point in different directions. □ [V P ] The main body of British, American, and French troops had fanned out to the west. COLLOCATIONS fan NOUN 1
noun + fan : cricket, football, rugby, sports; music
adjective + fan : big, great, huge; diehard, keen, loyal
fa|nat|ic /fənæ t I k/ (fanatics )
1 N‑COUNT If you describe someone as a fanatic , you disapprove of them because you consider their behaviour or opinions to be very extreme, for example in the way they support particular religious or political ideas. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ I am not a religious fanatic but I am a Christian.
2 N‑COUNT [usu n N ] If you say that someone is a fanatic , you mean that they are very enthusiastic about a particular activity, sport, or way of life. □ Both Rod and Phil are football fanatics.
3 ADJ Fanatic means the same as fanatical .
fa|nati|cal /fənæ t I k ə l/ ADJ If you describe someone as fanatical , you disapprove of them because you consider their behaviour or opinions to be very extreme. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ As a boy he was a fanatical patriot.
fa|nati|cism /fənæ t I s I zəm/ N‑UNCOUNT Fanaticism is fanatical behaviour or the quality of being fanatical. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ …a protest against intolerance and religious fanaticism.
fa n base also fanbase (fan bases ) N‑COUNT The fan base of someone such as a pop star or a pop group is their fans, considered as a whole. □ His fan base is mostly middle-aged ladies.
fa n belt (fan belts ) N‑COUNT In a car engine, the fan belt is the belt that drives the fan which keeps the engine cool.
fan|boy /fæ nbɔ I / (fanboys ) N‑COUNT A fanboy is a boy or a young man who is very enthusiastic about and interested in a particular thing such as a film, entertainer, or type of music. [INFORMAL ] □ Comic book fanboys will love this.
fan|ci|er /fæ nsiə r / (fanciers )
1 N‑COUNT An animal or plant fancier is a person who breeds animals or plants of a particular type or who is very interested in them. □ …pigeon fanciers.
2 → see also fancy ➋
fan|ci|ful /fæ ns I fʊl/ ADJ If you describe an idea as fanciful , you disapprove of it because you think it comes from someone's imagination, and is therefore unrealistic or unlikely to be true. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ …fanciful ideas about Martian life. □ Designing silicon chips to mimic human organs sounds fanciful.
fa n club (fan clubs ) N‑COUNT A fan club is an organized group of people who all admire the same person or thing, for example a pop singer or pop group. Members of the fan club receive information and can take part in activities such as trips to concerts.
fancy
➊ WANTING, LIKING, OR THINKING
➋ ELABORATE OR EXPENSIVE
➊ fan|cy ◆◇◇ /fæ nsi/ (fancies , fancying , fancied )
1 VERB If you fancy something, you want to have it or to do it. [mainly BRIT , INFORMAL ] □ [V v-ing] What do you fancy doing, anyway? □ [V n] I just fancied a drink.
2 N‑COUNT A fancy is a liking or desire for someone or something, especially one that does not last long. □ She did not suspect that his interest was just a passing fancy.
3 VERB If you fancy someone, you feel attracted to them, especially in a sexual way. [INFORMAL ] □ [V n] I think he thinks I fancy him or something.
4 VERB If you fancy yourself as a particular kind of person or fancy yourself doing a particular thing, you like the idea of being that kind of person or doing that thing. □ [V pron-refl + as ] So you fancy yourself as the boss someday? □ [V pron-refl v-ing] I didn't fancy myself wearing a kilt.
5 VERB If you say that someone fancies themselves as a particular kind of person, you mean that they think, often wrongly, that they have the good qualities which that kind of person has. □ [V pron-refl n] She fancies herself a bohemian. □ [V pron-refl] …a flighty young woman who really fancies herself.
6 VERB If you say that you fancy a particular competitor or team in a competition, you think they will win. [BRIT ] □ [V n] You have to fancy Bath because they are the most consistent team in England. □ [V n to-inf] I fancy England to win through.