skim the surface

skim the surface
{v. phr.} To do something very superficially. * /He seems knowledgeable in many different areas but his familiarity is very superficial, since he only skims the surface of everything he touches./

Dictionary of American idioms. 2013.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • skim the surface — {v. phr.} To do something very superficially. * /He seems knowledgeable in many different areas but his familiarity is very superficial, since he only skims the surface of everything he touches./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • skim\ the\ surface — v. phr. To do something very superficially. He seems knowledgeable in many different areas but his familiarity is very superficial, since he only skims the surface of everything he touches …   Словарь американских идиом

  • scratch the surface — Synonyms and related words: be innocent of, coquet with, dabble, give up, have no idea, know a little, know not, know not what, know nothing of, not know, not rightly know, pass, skim, skim over, skim the surface, smatter, touch upon, toy with,… …   Moby Thesaurus

  • scratch the surface — (Roget s IV) v. Syn. be superficial, analyze superficially, inspect superficially, touch on, touch upon, mention, skim, scan, brush; see also begin 1 , 2 …   English dictionary for students

  • skim — {{Roman}}I.{{/Roman}} verb ADVERB ▪ barely (figurative) ▪ This report has barely skimmed the surface of the subject. ▪ only ▪ low ▪ A bird skimmed low over th …   Collocations dictionary

  • surface — n. 1) a bumpy; even, smooth; frozen; plane; rough surface 2) below, beneath, under the surface (also fig.) 3) on the surface (also fig.) 4) (misc.) to scratch, skim the surface ( to treat superficially ) * * * [ sɜːfɪs] beneath even frozen …   Combinatory dictionary

  • skim — Synonyms and related words: avalanche, ball the jack, barrel, blink, boom, bowl along, breeze, breeze along, browse, brush, brush by, carefully ignore, caress, carom, clip, coast, cold shoulder, come in contact, contact, cream, cut a corner, cut… …   Moby Thesaurus

  • skim — /skim/, v., skimmed, skimming, n. v.t. 1. to take up or remove (floating matter) from the surface of a liquid, as with a spoon or ladle: to skim the cream from milk. 2. to clear (liquid) thus: to skim milk. 3. to move or glide lightly over or… …   Universalium

  • skim — [skım] v past tense and past participle skimmed present participle skimming [Date: 1400 1500; Origin: Perhaps from scum to remove scum (14 19 centuries), from scum (noun)] 1.) [T] to remove something from the surface of a liquid, especially… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • Skim — (sk[i^]m), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Skimmed} (sk[i^]md); p. pr. & vb. n. {Skimming}.] [Cf. Sw. skymma to darken. [root]158. See {Scum}.] 1. To clear (a liquid) from scum or substance floating or lying thereon, by means of a utensil that passes just… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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