瀏 (liú) - Flow, drift, swift current & to browse, skim through

瀏Tone 2

liú ｜ 18 strokes ｜ radical:

林伦

瀏 · liú

Flow, drift, swift current;

to browse, skim through;

to wander;

a surname.

Flow, drift, swift currentto browse, skim throughto wander

Usage highlights

BrowseFlowing swiftlyLiu RiverLiu Yang CityTo skim overTo glance over

Synonyms

  • 流— to flow
  • 覽— to look over, view (as in 瀏覽)
  • 閱— to read, review

Antonyms

  • 滯— stagnant, sluggish
  • 停— to stop

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • The river flows swiftly (瀏瀏).
  • I browse the internet (瀏覽網頁).
  • The clear, deep water (瀏水).
  • He skimmed through the document (瀏覽文件).

Collocations

  • Browse(瀏覽)
  • Flowing swiftly(瀏瀏)
  • Liu River(瀏水)
  • Liu Yang City(瀏陽市)
  • To skim over(瀏覽)
  • To glance over(瀏覽)

Idioms

  • Flowing clearly and swiftly(瀏瀏其流)
  • To browse through books(瀏覽群書)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • Originally described the clear, swift flow of water, particularly the Liu River (瀏水) in Hunan province.
  • The modern meaning 'to browse' (瀏覽) is an extended semantic use, suggesting a mind flowing or drifting over information.
  • Liu Yang City (瀏陽市) in Hunan is a place name derived from this character.

FAQ