fan out

Verb

fan out (third-person singular simple present fans out, present participle fanning out, simple past and past participle fanned out)

1. (also, figuratively, intransitive, transitive) To spread out into the shape of a fan.
   • West of the summit the cutting fans out at the entrance to the new yard on the north side.1963 June, “News and Comment: Sheffield scheme progress”, in Modern Railways, page 368
   • Its streets fan out towards the clifftops, and its sheltered North Landing harbours open-decked fishing boats, called 'cobles'.1980, AA Book of British Villages, Drive Publications Ltd, page 188, about Flamborough
2. (slang) To display (or reveal) oneself as a fan or obsessive.
   • A 2014 study published by Innovations in Clincal Neuroscience, however, pointed to "narcissistic features, dissociation, addictive tendencies, stalking behavior, and compulsive buying" among people who fan out over celebrities.2023 July 24, Elise Solé, “Should you worry if your teen is a 'stan'?”, in Today.com