browse

(brouz)

v., browsed, brows·ing, brows·es.

v.intr.

1. 1. To inspect something leisurely and casually: browsed through the map collection for items of interest.
   2. To read something superficially by selecting passages at random: browsed through the report during lunch.
2. To look for information on the Internet.
3. To feed on leaves, young shoots, and other vegetation; graze.

v.tr.

1. To look through or over (something) casually: browsed the newspaper; browsing the gift shops for souvenirs.
2. To read (websites) casually on the Internet.
3. 1. To nibble; crop.
   2. To graze on.

n.

1. Young twigs, leaves, and shoots that are fit for animals to eat.
2. An act of browsing.

[Probably from obsolete French broust, young shoot, from Old French brost, of Germanic origin.]

browsable brows'a·ble (-zə-bəl) adj.

View more Science videos

Grazing animals, rather than people browsing in books, provide the grammatical analogy for the new meaning in computing, 'to read or survey data files', which can be transitive or intransitive: (transitive)

Internet cafés aren't just places to buy coffee and browse the Web, they're a place to meet friends and communicate new ideas in a dynamic setting—Flak Magazine, American English 2004

(intransitive, with through) Michael continued to browse through the files—D. P. LaSelle, American English 2004.

A browser is a computer program with a graphical display for reading files on the Internet.

Previous:	brother-in-law, broker, brochure, pamphlet
Next:	brunette, buffalo, buffet

verb

To look through reading matter casually: dip into, flip through, glance at (or over) (or through), leaf (through), riffle (through), run through, scan, skim, thumb (through). See investigate, words.

IN BRIEF: n. - The act of feeding by continual nibbling; Reading superficially or at random v. - Eat lightly, try different dishes; Look around casually and randomly, without seeking anything in particular; Feed as in a meadow or pasture; Shop around.

Tutor's tip: As I "browse" (look around casually) in a bookstore, my "brows" (eyebrows and forehead) often raise in surprise at the strange titles.

LearnThatWord.com is a free vocabulary and spelling program where you only pay for results!

sign description: The V-hand begins at the eyes and then turns away from the face and moves up and down.

---

1. bushes and shrubs that goats and many wild herbivores eat in preference to grass and clover; they are said to browse instead of graze.
2. the bushy plants that goats eat; the counterpart of pasture.

For a list of words related to browse, see:

• Verbs of Sight - browse: look over in a casual, leisurely manner
• Thinking, Judgment, and Consideration - browse: consider casually

---

See words rhyming with "browse."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Browse.

Dansk (Danish)
v. intr. - bladre, kigge løseligt, ose
v. tr. - browse, bladre
n. - snusen, osen

Nederlands (Dutch)
grasduinen, doorbladeren, bladeren/ takken (veevoer)

Français (French)
v. intr. - parcourir, survoler, feuilleter les livres (dans une librairie), regarder sans acheter, (fig) parcourir (un livre), paître, brouter
v. tr. - brouter, paître
n. - regard rapide (sur un livre), pâture

Deutsch (German)
v. - grasen, fressen, schmökern, herumstöbern
n. - Grasen

Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - φυλλομετρώ, ξεφυλλίζω, περιεργάζομαι, χαζεύω (σε κατάστημα κ.λπ.), βόσκω

Italiano (Italian)
germoglio, occhiata rapida

Português (Portuguese)
v. - folhear, pastar, pesquisar, movimentar (comp.)

Русский (Russian)
просматривать

Español (Spanish)
v. intr. - echar un vistazo, dar una ojeada
v. tr. - echar un vistazo, dar una ojeada
n. - vistazo, ojeada

Svenska (Swedish)
v. - beta av, beta, gå runt o titta

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
吃叶, 浏览, 随便翻阅, 吃, 吃...上的草, 随意观看, 嫩叶, 嫩芽, 嫩枝, 吃草

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
v. intr. - 吃葉, 瀏覽, 隨便翻閱, 吃
v. tr. - 吃, 隨便翻閱, 吃...上的草, 隨意觀看
n. - 嫩葉, 嫩芽, 嫩枝, 瀏覽, 吃草

한국어 (Korean)
v. intr. - 새싹 따위를 먹다, 아무 대나 마음 내키는 대로 읽다
v. tr. - ~를 먹다, ~를 방목하다, ~을 마음 내키는 대로 읽다
n. - 어린 잎, 아무데나 여기저기 읽기

日本語 (Japanese)
v. - ざっと目を通す, 拾い読みする, 立ち読みする, 漫然と商品を見る, 若葉を食べる, 草を食む
n. - 拾い読み, 立ち読み, 若芽

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(فعل) يتصفح, ترعى بأكل العشب‏

עברית (Hebrew)
v. intr. - ‮ריפרף בספרים, ניזון מירק, רעה, עיין בקבצי נתונים במחשב‬
v. tr. - ‮ריפרף בספרים, עיין בקבצי נתונים במחשב‬
n. - ‮רפרוף, ריפרף בספרים, מרעה, עיון, עיון שטחי, ענפים צעירים כמזון לבקר, "שייט" באינטרנט‬

If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.

To select your translation preferences click here.