Definition

1. Verb:

   • To glide; to skim; to sail: To move smoothly, quickly, and effortlessly over a surface, often with light contact. This is the core meaning.
   • To skim (through); to glance over; to browse: To read, look at, or deal with something quickly and superficially, without attention to detail.
   • To graze; to brush (against): To touch or pass very lightly against something while moving.

2. Adjective (less common):

   • Weak; frail; spindly: Describing a person, plant, or object that is thin, weak, and lacking strength or sturdiness.

Usage Examples

• Verb (to glide):
  • Con thuyền lướt trên mặt hồ phẳng lặng. (The boat glided on the calm lake surface.)
  • Vận động viên trượt tuyết lướt xuống sườn núi. (The skier glided down the mountainside.)
• Verb (to skim/glance):
  • Tôi chỉ lướt qua các tiêu đề báo trước khi đi làm. (I only skimmed the newspaper headlines before work.)
  • Cô ấy lướt mắt nhìn danh sách một lượt. (She glanced over the list once.)
• Verb (to graze):
  • Quả bóng lướt qua má anh ấy. (The ball grazed his cheek.)
  • Máy bay lướt qua ngọn cây. (The plane brushed past the treetops.)
• Adjective (weak):
  • Cây lúa này lướt quá, dễ đổ. (This rice plant is too spindly and prone to falling over.)

Advanced Usage

• "lướt web": to surf the web, to browse the internet.
  • Cậu ấy dành cả buổi tối để lướt web. (He spent the whole evening surfing the web.)
• "lướt sóng": to surf (on waves).
  • Họ ra biển để lướt sóng. (They went to the sea to surf.)

Variants and Related Words

• Lướt thướt (adj): flowing, graceful (often for clothing or movement); can imply affectation.
  • Chiếc váy dài lướt thướt. (The long, flowing dress.)
• Lướt qua (phrasal verb): to glide past; to skim over; to pass by quickly.
  • Thời gian lướt qua thật nhanh. (Time glided by so quickly.)

Synonyms

• Glide, skim, sail, slide (for smooth movement).
• Browse, scan, glance over (for reading/looking).
• Graze, brush, touch lightly.
• Frail, weak, slender (as an adjective).

Related Idioms

• Lướt mặt như dao: Literally "to glide over the face like a knife," meaning to speak with sharp, cutting, or sarcastic words.
  • Lời của cô ấy lướt mặt như dao. (Her words were sharp like a knife.)
• Đọc lướt đại khái: To read superficially, just to get the gist.
  • Tôi chỉ đọc lướt đại khái bản báo cáo. (I just skimmed the report to get the general idea.)

verb

1. to glide; to graze
   • đi lướt qua
     to glide past