read

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   To look at written or printed words and understand their meaning.

   Have you read this book?

2. 2
   verb

   To say written words aloud.

   The teacher read the story to the children.

3. 3
   verb

   To have certain words written in it.

   The sign reads "No entry."

4. 4
   verb

   To study a subject, especially at university.

   She is reading law at Oxford.

5. 5
   noun

   Something that you read, judged by how enjoyable it is.

   The article was a very good read.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Read is an Old English word from a Germanic root meaning “advise, guess, interpret.” It is first found in the writings of Alfred the Great, and Old English riddle comes from the same root.

From Middle English reden, from Old English rǣdan (“to counsel, advise, consult; interpret, read”), from Proto-West Germanic *rādan, from Proto-Germanic *rēdaną (“advise, counsel”), from Proto-Indo-European *Hreh₁dʰ- (“to arrange”). Cognate with Scots rede, red (“to advise, counsel, decipher, read”), Saterland Frisian räide (“to advise, counsel”), West Frisian riede (“to advise, counsel”), Dutch raden (“to advise; guess”), German raten (“to advise; guess”), Danish råde (“to advise”), Swedish råda (“to advise, counsel”), Persian رده (rade, “to order, to arrange, class”). In West Germanic the ve…

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External links

• Google Images
• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary