= 27d567bc2d48d9f40e9ccc20ea370b15)
Alicorn comments on Possible Cockatrice in written form - Less Wrong
You are viewing a comment permalink. View the original post to see all comments and the full post content.
= 783df68a0f980790206b9ea87794c5b6)
Loading…= b715d02e85f7b3b4ae65ca3d3e450868)
Subscribe to RSS Feed
Powered by Reddit
= f037147d6e6c911a85753b9abdedda8d)
You are viewing a comment permalink. View the original post to see all comments and the full post content.
Comments (53)
AIEEEEEEE
*bursts into flames*
I don't bow to your elitist "authorities on usage". Our forces have already gained a foothold in wiktionary. How long can your precious Oxford English Dictionary last?
BWAHAHAHA!
I know I'm responding seriously to a joke, but as a huge OED fanboy, I feel I must point out that they are exceptionally broad and non-elitist in deciding what words and usages to include, and, although they point out what usages are considered nonstandard or neologistic, they never pretend to be legislators of language.
(And yes, it includes that sense of "peruse"!)
I actually like this (mis)use of peruse on anti-synonym grounds. There isn't really another word that means peruse in the way knb uses it here.
Skim?
So to me, skim means to start at the beginning and go through pages looking for words or phrases that are noteworthy in order to glean the general meaning of the text. Peruse, to me, connotes something more exploratory, more open-ended. You can start anywhere and if you see something interesting you may read it closely. You're not looking to get the general thesis but just sort of seeing what is there. Skimming is the equivalent of an artist looking at a scene and trying to sketch the general outlines and shapes she sees. Perusing is the equivalent of an artist looking at a scene, maybe finding something she likes and drawing that, and then maybe move on to another part of the scene and sketch that instead; she moves around in no particular order- just noticing things about the scene.
But maybe that connotation isn't universal.
Skim?