Meaning & use
browsed
Last updated
“browsed” is a form of “browse”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbtransitive or intransitive
Looked through goods in a shop or items in a collection in a relaxed way, without a firm plan to buy.
Grammar: Can have an object or not: she browsed the shelves, or she browsed for an hour.
Patterns
- browse through something
- browse for something
We browsed the secondhand bookshop until it closed.
She browsed through the sale rack for an hour.
He browsed in the market without buying anything.
verbtransitive or intransitive
Moved from page to page on the internet, reading or looking at things with no particular goal.
Grammar: Often used with the web or a site: he browsed the site.
Patterns
- browse the web
- browse a website
I browsed the web while waiting for my train.
He browsed several travel sites before booking.
They browsed online for a new sofa all evening.
verbintransitivebiology
Fed on leaves, young shoots and low plants, as deer or goats do.
Grammar: Used for animals that eat leaves rather than grass.
Patterns
- browse on something
Deer browsed on the shrubs at the edge of the forest.
The goats browsed along the hillside all morning.
A giraffe browsed on the highest branches.
Word forms
| base form | browse |
|---|---|
| third person singular | browses |
| -ing form | browsing |
Common combinations
- browsed the shelves
- She browsed the shelves for something to read.
- browsed the internet
- He browsed the internet for cheap flights.
- browsed through a catalog
- They browsed through the catalog together.
- browsed idly
- I browsed idly while the shop was quiet.
Synonyms and how they differ
- scanned
- Scanned means looking quickly for something specific, while browsed is slower and more relaxed.
- skimmed
- Skimmed suggests reading quickly on the surface, usually text.
- looked around
- Looked around is the casual everyday phrase and has no internet meaning.
- surfed
- Surfed is informal and used mostly for the internet.
Word family
Commonly confused: browsed or browsed? browsed or brewed?
browsed vs browsed
Browsed is the correct spelling of the past tense; broused is a misspelling.
browsed vs brewed
Brewed relates to making tea or beer and sounds somewhat similar.
Practice
Yesterday I ___ the shops but did not buy anything.
Choose one answer.
Browsed means looked around casually without buying. Brewed and bruised are real words but do not fit with shops.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “browsed”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.