> > That sounds a lot like the word "peruse," which in theory means, or at least, used to mean, "to study attentively," but by common usage means "to examine cursorily."
>
> No it doesn't! No! No! No! No dictionary I know has that definition at all. It's not a legitimate meaning for the word; it's just a common misunderstanding by people who don't know any better. (Actually I even disagree that it means "examine cursorily" by common usage -- that may be a common mistake, but, thank heaven, I do think it's actually still more common to see the word used correctly.)

Wow. I always thought "peruse" was simply an antonym for "study", with no particular intensity context. However when I look it up in my Collin's Dictionary, there are two apparently contrary definitions.

1. To read or examine with care.
2. To browse or read in a leisurely way (!)

Hmm, sounds like an oxymoron here.

Another word that I always thought was an intrinsic contradiction is the word "cleave". You can either cleave to (cling or adhere to) or just cleave (split apart). Strange.

Wolfspirit