guide vs skim

guide

verb
  • to steer or navigate, especially a ship or as a pilot. 

  • to serve as a guide for someone or something; to lead or direct in a way; to conduct in a course or path. 

  • to act as a guide. 

  • to exert control or influence over someone or something. 

  • to supervise the education or training of someone. 

noun
  • Someone who guides, especially someone hired to show people around a place or an institution and offer information and explanation, or to lead them through dangerous terrain. 

  • A grooved director for a probe or knife in surgery. 

  • A sign that guides people; guidepost. 

  • A blade or channel for directing the flow of water to the buckets in a water wheel. 

  • A spirit believed to speak through a medium. 

  • A member of a group marching in formation who sets the pattern of movement or alignment for the rest. 

  • A document or book that offers information or instruction; guidebook. 

  • Any marking or object that catches the eye to provide quick reference. 

skim

verb
  • To pass lightly; to glide along in an even, smooth course; to glide along near the surface. 

  • To surreptitiously scan a payment card in order to obtain its information for fraudulent purposes. 

  • To pass near the surface of; to brush the surface of; to glide swiftly along the surface of. 

  • To read quickly, skipping some detail. 

  • To throw an object so it bounces on water. 

  • To scrape off; to remove (something) from a surface 

  • To ricochet. 

  • To hasten along with superficial attention. 

  • To become coated over. 

  • To clear a liquid from (scum or substance floating or lying on it), especially the cream that floats on top of fresh milk. 

  • To put on a finishing coat of plaster. 

  • To clear (a liquid) from scum or substance floating or lying on it, by means of a utensil that passes just beneath the surface. 

  • To steal money from a business before the transaction has been recorded, thus avoiding detection. 

noun
  • Skim milk. 

  • That which is skimmed off. 

  • The act of skimming. 

  • A cursory reading, skipping the details. 

  • Theft of money from a business before the transaction has been recorded, thus avoiding detection. 

adj
  • Having lowered fat content. 

How often have the words guide and skim occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )