diff --git a/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/arithmetic.rs b/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/arithmetic.rs
index 4e3924b79be0f..874d42d7192a6 100644
--- a/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/arithmetic.rs
+++ b/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/arithmetic.rs
@@ -55,11 +55,8 @@ impl Expr {
             FunctionExpr::Pow(PowFunction::Generic),
             &[exponent.into()],
             false,
+            false,
         )
-        .with_function_options(|mut options| {
-            options.auto_explode = false;
-            options
-        })
     }
 
     /// Compute the square root of the given expression
@@ -117,11 +114,7 @@ impl Expr {
     /// Compute the inverse tangent of the given expression, with the angle expressed as the argument of a complex number
     #[cfg(feature = "trigonometry")]
     pub fn arctan2(self, x: Self) -> Self {
-        self.map_many_private(FunctionExpr::Atan2, &[x], false)
-            .with_function_options(|mut options| {
-                options.auto_explode = false;
-                options
-            })
+        self.map_many_private(FunctionExpr::Atan2, &[x], false, false)
     }
 
     /// Compute the hyperbolic cosine of the given expression
diff --git a/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/binary.rs b/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/binary.rs
index 9a1d6f2fd81c4..5c8aab05c5796 100644
--- a/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/binary.rs
+++ b/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/binary.rs
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@ impl BinaryNameSpace {
             FunctionExpr::BinaryExpr(BinaryFunction::Contains),
             &[pat],
             true,
+            true,
         )
     }
 
@@ -19,6 +20,7 @@ impl BinaryNameSpace {
             FunctionExpr::BinaryExpr(BinaryFunction::EndsWith),
             &[sub],
             true,
+            true,
         )
     }
 
@@ -28,6 +30,7 @@ impl BinaryNameSpace {
             FunctionExpr::BinaryExpr(BinaryFunction::StartsWith),
             &[sub],
             true,
+            true,
         )
     }
 }
diff --git a/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/dt.rs b/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/dt.rs
index 25c37906014c7..873838686a8d2 100644
--- a/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/dt.rs
+++ b/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/dt.rs
@@ -219,6 +219,7 @@ impl DateLikeNameSpace {
         self.0.map_many_private(
             FunctionExpr::TemporalExpr(TemporalFunction::Truncate(offset)),
             &[every, ambiguous],
+            true,
             false,
         )
     }
@@ -265,7 +266,7 @@ impl DateLikeNameSpace {
     #[cfg(feature = "date_offset")]
     pub fn offset_by(self, by: Expr) -> Expr {
         self.0
-            .map_many_private(FunctionExpr::DateOffset, &[by], false)
+            .map_many_private(FunctionExpr::DateOffset, &[by], true, false)
     }
 
     #[cfg(feature = "timezones")]
@@ -273,6 +274,7 @@ impl DateLikeNameSpace {
         self.0.map_many_private(
             FunctionExpr::TemporalExpr(TemporalFunction::ReplaceTimeZone(time_zone)),
             &[ambiguous],
+            true,
             false,
         )
     }
@@ -281,6 +283,7 @@ impl DateLikeNameSpace {
         self.0.map_many_private(
             FunctionExpr::TemporalExpr(TemporalFunction::Combine(tu)),
             &[time],
+            true,
             false,
         )
     }
diff --git a/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/list.rs b/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/list.rs
index 6d7b1c10b9c3a..b9e584b4a1916 100644
--- a/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/list.rs
+++ b/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/list.rs
@@ -84,8 +84,12 @@ impl ListNameSpace {
 
     /// Get items in every sublist by index.
     pub fn get(self, index: Expr) -> Expr {
-        self.0
-            .map_many_private(FunctionExpr::ListExpr(ListFunction::Get), &[index], false)
+        self.0.map_many_private(
+            FunctionExpr::ListExpr(ListFunction::Get),
+            &[index],
+            true,
+            false,
+        )
     }
 
     /// Get items in every sublist by multiple indexes.
@@ -98,6 +102,7 @@ impl ListNameSpace {
         self.0.map_many_private(
             FunctionExpr::ListExpr(ListFunction::Take(null_on_oob)),
             &[index],
+            true,
             false,
         )
     }
@@ -119,6 +124,7 @@ impl ListNameSpace {
         self.0.map_many_private(
             FunctionExpr::ListExpr(ListFunction::Join),
             &[separator],
+            true,
             false,
         )
     }
@@ -169,6 +175,7 @@ impl ListNameSpace {
         self.0.map_many_private(
             FunctionExpr::ListExpr(ListFunction::Slice),
             &[offset, length],
+            true,
             false,
         )
     }
@@ -248,6 +255,7 @@ impl ListNameSpace {
             .map_many_private(
                 FunctionExpr::ListExpr(ListFunction::Contains),
                 &[other],
+                true,
                 false,
             )
             .with_function_options(|mut options| {
@@ -264,6 +272,7 @@ impl ListNameSpace {
             .map_many_private(
                 FunctionExpr::ListExpr(ListFunction::CountMatches),
                 &[other],
+                true,
                 false,
             )
             .with_function_options(|mut options| {
@@ -278,11 +287,11 @@ impl ListNameSpace {
             .map_many_private(
                 FunctionExpr::ListExpr(ListFunction::SetOperation(set_operation)),
                 &[other],
+                false,
                 true,
             )
             .with_function_options(|mut options| {
                 options.input_wildcard_expansion = true;
-                options.auto_explode = false;
                 options
             })
     }
diff --git a/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/mod.rs b/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/mod.rs
index 955409be0baf2..1e46c101335ff 100644
--- a/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/mod.rs
+++ b/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/mod.rs
@@ -690,6 +690,7 @@ impl Expr {
         self,
         function_expr: FunctionExpr,
         arguments: &[Expr],
+        auto_explode: bool,
         cast_to_supertypes: bool,
     ) -> Self {
         let mut input = Vec::with_capacity(arguments.len() + 1);
@@ -701,7 +702,7 @@ impl Expr {
             function: function_expr,
             options: FunctionOptions {
                 collect_groups: ApplyOptions::ApplyFlat,
-                auto_explode: true,
+                auto_explode,
                 cast_to_supertypes,
                 ..Default::default()
             },
@@ -1053,7 +1054,7 @@ impl Expr {
         let arguments = &[other];
         // we don't have to apply on groups, so this is faster
         if has_literal {
-            self.map_many_private(BooleanFunction::IsIn.into(), arguments, true)
+            self.map_many_private(BooleanFunction::IsIn.into(), arguments, true, true)
         } else {
             self.apply_many_private(BooleanFunction::IsIn.into(), arguments, true, true)
         }
diff --git a/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/string.rs b/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/string.rs
index 5145e86ebd00d..cb321fcfe5926 100644
--- a/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/string.rs
+++ b/crates/polars-plan/src/dsl/string.rs
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ impl StringNameSpace {
             }),
             &[pat],
             true,
+            true,
         )
     }
 
@@ -28,6 +29,7 @@ impl StringNameSpace {
             }),
             &[pat],
             true,
+            true,
         )
     }
 
@@ -37,6 +39,7 @@ impl StringNameSpace {
             FunctionExpr::StringExpr(StringFunction::EndsWith),
             &[sub],
             true,
+            true,
         )
     }
 
@@ -46,6 +49,7 @@ impl StringNameSpace {
             FunctionExpr::StringExpr(StringFunction::StartsWith),
             &[sub],
             true,
+            true,
         )
     }
 
@@ -119,13 +123,17 @@ impl StringNameSpace {
     /// Extract each successive non-overlapping match in an individual string as an array
     pub fn extract_all(self, pat: Expr) -> Expr {
         self.0
-            .map_many_private(StringFunction::ExtractAll.into(), &[pat], false)
+            .map_many_private(StringFunction::ExtractAll.into(), &[pat], true, false)
     }
 
     /// Count all successive non-overlapping regex matches.
     pub fn count_matches(self, pat: Expr, literal: bool) -> Expr {
-        self.0
-            .map_many_private(StringFunction::CountMatches(literal).into(), &[pat], false)
+        self.0.map_many_private(
+            StringFunction::CountMatches(literal).into(),
+            &[pat],
+            true,
+            false,
+        )
     }
 
     /// Convert a Utf8 column into a Date/Datetime/Time column.
@@ -134,6 +142,7 @@ impl StringNameSpace {
         self.0.map_many_private(
             StringFunction::Strptime(dtype, options).into(),
             &[ambiguous],
+            true,
             false,
         )
     }
@@ -205,13 +214,13 @@ impl StringNameSpace {
     /// Split the string by a substring. The resulting dtype is `List<Utf8>`.
     pub fn split(self, by: Expr) -> Expr {
         self.0
-            .map_many_private(StringFunction::Split(false).into(), &[by], false)
+            .map_many_private(StringFunction::Split(false).into(), &[by], true, false)
     }
 
     /// Split the string by a substring and keep the substring. The resulting dtype is `List<Utf8>`.
     pub fn split_inclusive(self, by: Expr) -> Expr {
         self.0
-            .map_many_private(StringFunction::Split(true).into(), &[by], false)
+            .map_many_private(StringFunction::Split(true).into(), &[by], true, false)
     }
 
     #[cfg(feature = "dtype-struct")]
@@ -261,6 +270,7 @@ impl StringNameSpace {
             FunctionExpr::StringExpr(StringFunction::Replace { n: 1, literal }),
             &[pat, value],
             true,
+            true,
         )
     }
 
@@ -271,6 +281,7 @@ impl StringNameSpace {
             FunctionExpr::StringExpr(StringFunction::Replace { n, literal }),
             &[pat, value],
             true,
+            true,
         )
     }
 
@@ -281,6 +292,7 @@ impl StringNameSpace {
             FunctionExpr::StringExpr(StringFunction::Replace { n: -1, literal }),
             &[pat, value],
             true,
+            true,
         )
     }
 
@@ -313,6 +325,7 @@ impl StringNameSpace {
         self.0.map_many_private(
             FunctionExpr::StringExpr(StringFunction::StripPrefix),
             &[prefix],
+            true,
             false,
         )
     }
@@ -322,6 +335,7 @@ impl StringNameSpace {
         self.0.map_many_private(
             FunctionExpr::StringExpr(StringFunction::StripSuffix),
             &[suffix],
+            true,
             false,
         )
     }