Meaning & use
fan base
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Meanings
nouncountable
The group of fans who regularly support a particular person, band, team, or organization.
Grammar: Countable; often used with 'a' or 'the', e.g., 'a loyal fan base'.
Patterns
- a loyal fan base
- build a fan base
- expand one's fan base
The band has a huge fan base in Europe.
The team's fan base has grown since they won the championship.
Social media helped her build a loyal fan base.
nouncountable
The collective fans of a particular product, brand, or public figure, considered as a group.
Grammar: Often used with modifiers like 'loyal', 'dedicated', or 'global'.
Patterns
- a dedicated fan base
- a global fan base
The actress has a dedicated fan base that follows her every project.
The brand's fan base is mostly made up of young adults.
Word forms
| plural | fan bases |
|---|
Common combinations
- loyal fan base
- The singer thanked her loyal fan base for their support.
- build a fan base
- It takes years to build a fan base for a new sports team.
- expand one's fan base
- The movie helped the actor expand his fan base internationally.
- a large fan base
- The video game has a large fan base around the world.
Synonyms and how they differ
- following
- Similar but can also mean people who follow someone on social media; 'fan base' is more specific to fans of a person or group.
- supporters
- Often used for sports teams or political groups; 'fan base' is broader and includes entertainment.
Word family
- fan noun
- A person who admires or supports someone or something.
Commonly confused: fan base or fanbase?
fan base vs fanbase
Sometimes written as one word, but the two-word form 'fan base' is more standard in edited writing.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence:
Choose one answer.
We say 'in' a region or continent when talking about where a fan base is located. The other prepositions are not used in this context.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “fan base”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.