Translation guide
The English word 'skimming' has several distinct meanings. This guide covers the most common uses: reading quickly, removing a top layer, and throwing a flat stone across water. It also briefly covers the financial fraud meaning.
To read something quickly to get the main ideas without reading every word.
A common, natural way to say 'read through quickly' or 'skim'. 'ざっと' means roughly or quickly.
レポートをざっと読んだ。
I skimmed the report.
Literally 'flow reading', this is a very common expression for skimming or scanning text without focusing on details.
新聞を流し読みした。
I skimmed the newspaper.
Literally 'diagonal reading', implying reading quickly and not thoroughly. Slightly more casual than 流し読み.
メールを斜め読みしただけだから、詳細は覚えていない。
I just skimmed the email, so I don't remember the details.
Means 'picking out reading', i.e., reading only parts of a text. Can be used for skimming, but often implies selective reading rather than speed.
彼はその本を拾い読みした。
He skimmed through the book.
To remove something floating on the surface of a liquid, such as fat or foam.
General term for scooping something off the surface. Used for skimming foam, fat, or floating objects.
スープのあくをすくい取る。
Skim the scum off the soup.
Means 'to remove'. When combined with context (e.g., 表面から), it can express skimming. Less specific than すくい取る.
Specifically for skimming scum or foam that rises when cooking. Very common in recipes.
煮立ったらあくを取ってください。
When it boils, please skim off the scum.
To throw a flat stone so that it bounces off the surface of water.
The standard expression for stone skimming. Literally 'do water cutting'.
子供たちが湖で水切りをして遊んでいた。
The children were playing by skimming stones on the lake.
Refers to a flat stone suitable for skimming. Not the action itself, but useful related vocabulary.
水切り石を探す。
Look for a skimming stone.
Illegally taking small amounts of money from many transactions, often electronically.
The loanword 'skimming' is commonly used in Japanese for this specific financial crime, especially credit card skimming.
カードのスキミング被害にあった。
I was a victim of card skimming.
A descriptive phrase meaning 'to read information illegally'. Used in formal contexts.
ATMでカード情報を不正に読み取られた。
My card information was skimmed at the ATM.
All three mean 'to skim' in the reading sense. 流し読み implies letting the text flow by without stopping. 斜め読み suggests reading diagonally, skipping parts. ざっと読む is a more general 'read roughly/quickly'. They are often interchangeable.
この本は流し読みで十分だ。
Skimming this book is enough.
斜め読みしたけど、面白そうだね。
I just skimmed it, but it looks interesting.
ざっと読んだだけだから、間違いがあるかも。
I only skimmed it, so there might be mistakes.
表面の脂を取り除く。
Skim the fat off the surface.