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Synonyms

scratch the surface

Idioms  

  1. Investigate or treat something superficially, as in This feed-the-hungry program only scratches the surface of the problem, or Her survey course barely scratches the surface of economic history. This metaphoric term transfers shallow markings made in a stone or other material to a shallow treatment of a subject or issue. [Early 1900s]

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

In my short lifespan, I probably won’t do more than scratch the surface of what an orchestra can do, but I’m working on it.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 18, 2025

The 13 films below only scratch the surface of Corman’s huge filmography, but they do provide a glimpse into his ambition and his sensibility as both a director and a micro studio boss.

From New York Times • May 12, 2024

Ms Babst said the government's new contract will only "scratch the surface" but it said it had listened to the profession.

From BBC • Feb. 13, 2024

"Considering that the vast majority of reductases encoded by gut bacteria remain functionally uncharacterized, identified metabolisms may only scratch the surface of interactions between respiratory reductases and the gut metabolome," the study authors wrote.

From Salon • Jan. 5, 2024

Mateo says, which doesn’t really scratch the surface on who they are to me, but I let it slide because this is so wild even Mateo is tearing up for me.

From "They Both Die at the End" by Adam Silvera

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.