The Chinese word 浏览 (liúlǎn), meaning "to browse" or "to skim", is a compound word formed by combining two characters with related meanings. The first character, 浏 (liú), originally meant "clear and deep water" but, through extended usage, evokes a sense of swiftness and smoothness, as in a flowing stream. The second character, 览 (lǎn), means "to look at", "to view", or "to read". When combined, the word metaphorically describes the action of "viewing smoothly and swiftly", much like one's eyes flow over text or images without deep, focused attention, perfectly capturing the concept of casual, rapid, or general scanning.