What is the meaning of this idom

[greash]

could you help me to understand the meaning of this idom and wether it is mainly used in written or spoken English?

'To put out feelers'

Best Regards

[Anglika]

To put out feelers means to try to discover what people think about something that you might do.

I was thinking about standing for election, so I put out some feelers to see if it was a good idea.

It is used in both spoken and written English, and is often used.