Word family noun read reader readership reading readability adjective readable ≠ unreadable verb read
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishreadread1 /riːd/ ●●● S1 W1 verb (past tense and past participle read /red/) 1 words/books [intransitive, transitive]READ to look at written words and understand what they mean I can’t read your writing. She picked up the letter and read it. Read the instructions carefully before you start. children who are just learning to read and write Her books are quite widely read (=read by a lot of people). When I was young, I read every one of his books from cover to cover (=read all of something because you are very interested).2 find information [intransitive, transitive not in progressive]READ to find out information from books, newspapers etc You can’t believe everything you read in the papers.read about Did you read about what happened to that guy in Florida?read of I was shocked when I read of his death.read (that) I read last week that the disease is on the increase.3 read and speak [intransitive, transitive]READ to say the words in a book, newspaper etc so that people can hear themread somebody something Daddy, will you read me a story?read (something) to somebody Our mother reads to us every evening. Teachers should read more poetry to children. He glanced at the letter and began to read it aloud.4 music/maps etc [transitive]UNDERSTAND to look at signs or pictures and understand what they mean He plays the violin very well but can’t actually read music. Are you any good at map reading?5 computer [transitive] technicalTD if a computer can read a disk, it can take the information that is on the disk and put it into its memory 6 understand something in a particular way [transitive always + adverb/preposition]UNDERSTAND to understand a situation, remark etc in one of several possible ways SYN interpret I wasn’t sure how to read his silence.read something as something She shook her head, and I read this as a refusal. The poem can be read as a protest against war.read something well/accurately (=understand something correctly) He had accurately read the mood of the nation.7 have words on [transitive not in progressive]READ used to say what words are on a sign, in a letter etc SYN say A sign on the outer door read: ‘No Entry’.8 style of writing [intransitive] if something reads well, badly etc, it has been written well, badly etc I think in general the report reads well.9 → read something as/for something10 measuring [transitive] a) TMto look at the number or amount shown on a measuring instrument Someone should be coming to read the gas meter. b) TMif a measuring instrument reads a particular number, it shows that number The thermometer read 46 degrees.11 at university [intransitive, transitive] British EnglishSEC to study a subject at a university I read history at Cambridge.read for He wants to read for a law degree.RegisterIn everyday British English, people usually say that someone does a subject at university:I did history at Cambridge.He wants to do a law degree. 12 → take it as read (that)13 → take something as read14 → read between the lines15 → read somebody’s mind/thoughts16 → can read somebody like a book17 → read somebody’s palm18 → read somebody’s lips19 → read my lips20 → do you read me?21 → well-read/widely-read → reading, → read (somebody) the riot act at riot1(4)GRAMMAR: Patterns with readread something in something• You read something in a book, newspaper, magazine etc: I read the interview in the newspaper. ✗Don’t say: read something on a book, newspaper, magazine etc • You read something in a particular chapter of a book, or in the introduction: In this chapter you can read about different types of diet. • You read something in the instructions or in a recipe: I read in the instructions that you are supposed to boil the pasta for six minutes. read something on something• You read something on the Internet or on a website: She read the story on the Internet.• You read something on a page: You can read about his life story on page 12.• You read something on a train, bus, plane etc: I like reading on the train – it helps to pass the time. ✗Don’t say: read something in a train, bus, plane etcTHESAURUSread to look at and understand the words in a book, magazine, letter etc for interest, enjoyment, or studyWhat book are you reading at the moment?I usually read the newspaper on the way to work.flick/flip/leaf through something to turn the pages of a book, magazine etc quickly, looking for things that might interest youWhile I was waiting, I flicked through a magazine.She was flipping through the pages of an encyclopedia.Cunningham was leafing through a copy of the Financial Times at his desk amidst a cloud of cigar-smoke.browse through something to spend time looking through a book, magazine etc without any clear purpose, looking for things that might interest youWould you like to browse through our holiday brochure?skim/scan (through) something to read something quickly to get the main ideas or find a particular piece of informationI want you to skim through the article and write a short summary of it.Tony scanned the menu for a vegetarian option.pore over something to read something very carefully for a long timeThey spent weeks poring over guidebooks and planning their holiday.devour something /dɪˈvaʊə $ -ˈvaʊr/ to read something quickly and eagerlyHer young fans devour her books.dip into something to read short parts of somethingIt’s a book you can dip into rather than read from cover to cover.plough/wade through something to read something long and boringHe’s upstairs ploughing through financial reports.I can’t possibly wade through all this.surf the Net/Internet/Web to look quickly through information on the Internet, stopping to read what interests youHe surfed the Net, looking for jobs. → read something ↔ back → read for something → read something into something → read something ↔ out → read something ↔ through/over → read up on something→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
read• map reading• My parents taught me how to read.• On the other hand, your readers might be bright and fully conscious of what they are reading.• Good managers are usually able to read a situation quickly and take the right action.• Jean can't read a word without her glasses on.• On the way out I noticed a photograph of a benign-looking chap and read about his gifts to charity.• Did you read about that terrible car crash?• The headline read: "Firefighters Save Girl From Flames."• Don't believe everything you read in the newspapers.• Have you read Jean Martin's latest novel?• Read me Aunt Evelyn's letter while I cook dinner.• She went on to read medicine at Edinburgh.• I learned to read music when I was taking piano lessons.• The Government is also to rush through a ban on fox hunting by holding the bill's second reading on December 18.• Finally, it never hurts to wear our own love of reading on our sleeve.• Oliver is reading philosophy at Oxford.• I can read Spanish but I can't speak it very well.• Have you read Stephen King's new book yet?• I was astonished to read that half of all sixteen year olds have experimented with drugs.• The judge had been reading the court file.• Someone came to read the electricity meter this morning.• I opened the seals as carefully as I could and read the file.• Always read the label before you wash your clothes.• We can not help signing so long as there is another human being who needs to read the signs.• Men shouldn't be surprised if women read this behaviour as threatening.• I marveled at her physical beauty, wanting her to like me, to read to me, to even hold me.• She learnt to read when she was only three years old.• Soon utility companies may be able to read your meter by computer.widely read• The older works listed first are still widely read and most are generally available in both hardcover and paperback.• Local newspapers are widely read and relatively cheap to advertise in.• But he was one of the most well-informed, widely read and serious political figures in public life.• For all its note of fantasy, however, the article was widely read and well timed.• But even though his book was intended for contemplatives, it was also widely read by lay men and women.• Herbert is widely read, where Collins is seldom even heard of.• Newspapers with a significant political reporting are not widely read, whereas television news programs are often among the most-watched programs.read (that)• It is a disheartening history to read.• As a boy I had read a lot of sea stories and indulged in fancies of rounding the Horn in a windjammer.• We read everything teachers have told us is important.• Their son had begun to read in kindergarten and was academically advanced.• I read it with interest, then forgot it.• They began to meet in private houses where they read sermons and prayed together.• To make up your mind what to do, we suggest that you read several of the books your son has read.read somebody something• Daddy, will you read me a story?read something as something• Please read "5.2% interest" as "5.5% interest".• For "November" on line 6, read "September."• Low test scores should not be read as a sign of failure.• People read his silence as an admission of guilt.reads well• On the whole the translation reads well.• Johnson's travel guide reads well and is very informative.readread2 noun [singular] informal 1 British EnglishREAD if you have a read, you spend time reading I sat down to have a nice quiet read.read of I had a quick read of the report before I left.2 → a good readExamples from the Corpus
read• The newspaper is trying to attract more young readers.• A careful read of this book will show that underpinning it is a terrible truth.• Not even the most unreconstructed Keynesian would ever claim that the General Theory was an easy read.• I would like to recommend it to both sexes as a jolly exciting read.• It is certainly worth a good read, and I can recommend it to anyone interested in this subject.• On one level, it is vastly entertaining and a rattling good read.• I do a lot of reading when I'm on vacation.• Children are taught reading and writing in their first years at school.have a ... read• Have the students read or listen to the passages.• He might have been rather less relieved if he could have read her mind.• Of 100 gravestones that I have read nearby, 57 are for children who died before the age of 20.• Thompson must have read the explosive Nixon transcripts wistfully.• This directory must exist and the user must have at least read and write access to it.• This is one page you have to read, and read carefully.Origin read1 Old English rædan 