Translation guide
The English verb 'skim' has several distinct meanings. This guide covers the most common ones for learners: removing a layer from the surface of a liquid, reading quickly, throwing a flat stone across water, and moving lightly over a surface.
To take something off the top of a liquid, like cream from milk or scum from soup.
General verb for scooping or skimming something from the surface of a liquid. Can be used for removing foam, scum, or floating solids.
鍋のアクをすくう。
Skim the scum off the pot.
スープの表面の油をすくい取る。
Skim the oil off the surface of the soup.
Emphasizes the action of scooping and removing. Often used when you want to get rid of something unwanted on the surface.
浮いている油をすくい取ってください。
Please skim off the floating oil.
Means 'to remove' in general. Can be used for skimming when combined with context like 'from the surface', but is less specific.
表面の泡を取り除く。
Remove the foam from the surface.
To look through a text quickly to get the main ideas without reading every word.
The most common and natural way to say 'skim' in the sense of reading quickly. 'ざっと' means roughly or briefly.
新聞にざっと目を通す。
Skim the newspaper.
レポートをざっと読んだ。
I skimmed the report.
Literally 'flow reading', implies reading quickly without stopping, like skimming. Slightly more casual.
メールを流し読みした。
I skimmed through the email.
Means 'to pick out and read', i.e., reading only parts of a text. Similar to skimming but emphasizes selecting bits.
記事を拾い読みする。
Skim through the article (picking out parts).
To throw a flat stone across the surface of water so that it skips.
The standard expression for stone skipping. '水切り' literally means 'water cutting'.
子供たちが湖で水切りをして遊んでいる。
The children are playing by skimming stones on the lake.
A less common, more literal phrase meaning 'to cut a stone (across water)'. Understandable but not the typical term.
彼は石を切るのが上手だ。
He is good at skimming stones.
To glide or pass swiftly and lightly over or along a surface.
Means to graze or brush against. Used when something moves quickly and lightly touching a surface.
ツバメが水面をかすめて飛んだ。
The swallow skimmed over the water surface.
Descriptive phrase meaning 'to move as if sliding'. Good for conveying smooth, light motion over a surface.
スケーターが氷の上を滑るように動いた。
The skater skimmed over the ice.
In English, 'skim' means reading quickly for general understanding, while 'scan' means looking for specific information. In Japanese, ざっと読む can cover both, but if you need to be precise, use 探し読みする (さがしよみする) for scanning.
必要な情報を探し読みする。
Scan for the necessary information.