browse

/braʊz/

Reviewed on

Also a noun

Meaning

  1. To look through items or goods casually without a clear intention to buy.

    • Customers often browse through the racks while waiting for their friends to arrive.

    • Did you buy anything at the bookstore, or were you just browsing?

  2. To read or scan text casually or look at different web pages online.

    • He browses news headlines every morning during his daily subway commute.

    • Have you ever browsed through that old digital archive?

  3. To feed on leaves, twigs, or other high vegetation.

    • Deer often browse on young saplings along the edge of the clearing.

    • The goats were quietly browsing in the overgrown field behind the barn.

How it's used

When this means “look through goods or text”

  • browse through the store
  • browse the shelves

She browsed the racks for nearly an hour.

When this means “feed on vegetation”

  • browse on young shrubs

“browse on them.”

The deer browse on the lower branches.

Collocations

  • browse the web
  • browse online
  • browse the catalog

Synonyms

  • peruse
  • scan
  • graze