leaf through

Idioms and Phrases

Turn pages, as in browsing or searching for something. For example, There she sat, leafing through the various catalogs . This expression employs leaf in the sense of “turn over the leaves of a book,” a usage dating from the mid-1600s.

Example Sentences

This consisted of inhaling the fumes of the leaf through a Y-shaped device applied to the nostrils.

From Project Gutenberg

As you look at those documents—would you leaf through all the pages I have mentioned?

From Project Gutenberg

She drew a long palm leaf through her fingers and let it fall regretfully.

From Project Gutenberg

This can be seen very plainly by looking at a common mallow-leaf through a microscope.

From Project Gutenberg

He must have known—for news such as this travels from leaf to leaf through the forest.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• browse
• check
• examine
• flash
• flip through
• look through
• scour
• search
• skim
• thumb through