Meaning & use
panning
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“panning” is a form of “pan”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
noununcountabletechnical
The act of rotating a camera horizontally to follow a moving subject or scan a scene.
Grammar: Uncountable; often used in film and photography contexts.
Patterns
- panning across something
- panning shot
- smooth panning
The director used slow panning to reveal the entire landscape.
Good panning requires a steady hand or a tripod.
The panning across the crowd captured the excitement.
noununcountable
The traditional method of searching for gold by washing gravel and sediment in a shallow pan.
Grammar: Uncountable; refers to the activity.
Patterns
- gold panning
- panning for gold
Gold panning is a popular tourist activity in some mountain towns.
He spent the afternoon panning in the river but found only a few flakes.
Panning requires patience and a good pan.
noununcountableinformal
The act of criticizing something severely.
Grammar: Uncountable; informal.
Patterns
- panning of something
- get a panning
The new movie received a severe panning from critics.
His performance got a panning in the press.
Common combinations
- gold panning
- Gold panning is a hobby for many in Alaska.
- panning shot
- The film opens with a panning shot of the city.
- panning for gold
- They went panning for gold in the river.
- receive a panning
- The play received a panning from the critics.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
- pan verb
- To rotate a camera or wash gravel in a pan.
Commonly confused: panning or paining?
panning vs paining
Present participle of 'pain'; means causing pain, not related to camera or gold.
Practice
The cinematographer used a slow ______ to show the entire room.
Choose one answer.
'Panning' is the noun for the camera movement. 'Paining' means causing pain, 'panned' is past tense, and 'pan' is the base verb or noun.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “panning”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.