skim over
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Verb:
- To move or pass swiftly and lightly over the surface of something: To glide or travel quickly over a surface without penetrating deeply or stopping.
- To read or examine something superficially or hastily: To look through or read something quickly to get only the main ideas, without paying attention to details.
Examples of Usage
Verb (Physical Movement):
- The stone skimmed over the surface of the lake before sinking.
- The speedboat skimmed over the waves.
Verb (Reading/Examination):
- I only had time to skim over the report before the meeting.
- She skimmed over the terms and conditions without reading them carefully.
Advanced Usage
- "to skim over the details": to avoid discussing or considering the specific, often important, points of a subject.
- The presentation skimmed over the details of the financial risks involved.
Variants and Related Words
- Skim (verb): The base form, meaning to move lightly over a surface or to read quickly.
- Please skim this chapter for the key concepts.
- Skimming (noun/gerund): The action of moving lightly over a surface or reading superficially.
- The skimming of stones is a popular lakeside activity.
Synonyms
- Glide over: To move smoothly and continuously over a surface.
- Scan: To look over or read quickly to find specific information or get a general impression.
- Browse: To look through or read something in a casual, leisurely way.
Related Phrasal Verbs
- Skim through: Very similar to "skim over," meaning to read something quickly or superficially.
- I'll just skim through the article to see if it's relevant.
Related Idioms
- To scratch the surface: To deal with or understand only a small part of a subject. (This is related conceptually to the superficial examination meaning of "skim over.")
- Our investigation has only scratched the surface of the problem.
Verb
- move or pass swiftly and lightly over the surface of
- read superficially