No leo manuscritos.
I don't read manuscripts.
The writer turns down a stranger's manuscript. Talking about himself, he swaps the -er of leer for -o and says leo.
Spanish vocabularyA1 · Beginner
How to say "read" in Spanish
leer
verbpresent: leo, lees, leegerund: leyendo
"To read" in Spanish is leer. The ending tells you who is reading: leo (I read), lees (you read), lee (he or she reads). Say both e's, because le-ER has two syllables.
Hear "leer" in real movie scenes
One line with leo, one with lee. Each video starts and stops on that line.
Pero si lee el periódico.
But she reads the newspaper.
The man can't make sense of it: she reads the newspaper, yet she doesn't know how much time has passed. For he, she or formal you, the form is lee.
Leer in the present tense
Regular -er endings. In lee, leemos and leen, two e's sit side by side and both are pronounced.
| Who | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| yo | leo | I read |
| tú | lees | you read |
| él, ella, usted | lee | he or she reads, you read (formal) |
| nosotros | leemos | we read |
| vosotros | leéis | you all read (Spain) |
| ellos, ustedes | leen | they read, you all read |
Tip: To read out loud is leer en voz alta, a phrase you'll hear in every classroom.
Grammar: using leer
Four points for reading in Spanish.
No preposition before the thing
Leo el periódico. Lees una revista. What you read comes right after the verb.Reading in a language
Put en before the language: Leo bastante bien en francés. I read French quite well.I like reading
After me gusta, keep the infinitive: Me gusta leer. Spanish has no -ing form here.The y in the past
Between two vowels, the i is written y: leyó (he read), leyeron (they read), leyendo (reading).Example sentences
Sentences from the Wordy Spanish course. Tap to listen.
Leo el periódico.
I read the newspaper.
¿En dónde lees todas esas cosas?
Where do you read all that stuff?
Siempre leo el periódico con mi abuelo.
I always read the newspaper with my grandpa.
Me gusta leer antes de dormir.
I like to read before bed.
Common mistakes
Mistakes learners make with this word, and how to fix them.
✗Yo lee
✓Yo leo
With yo, the -er of the infinitive becomes -o.
✗one syllable, like English "leer" (pronunciation)
✓leh-EHR
Each e is its own syllable, and the stress lands on the second one.
✗Me gusta leo
✓Me gusta leer
Gusta already carries the conjugation, so leer stays in the infinitive.
✗Él leió
✓Él leyó
In the past tense, an i squeezed between two vowels is spelled y.
Practice: 3 quick exercises
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1 of 3 · Watch and choose
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The other 32 exercises on this topic are in the app.
How to remember it
Picture Leo the lion in reading glasses: Leo lee el periódico. And leo is also how you say "I read".
Questions about "read" in Spanish
How do you say read in Spanish?
The verb is leer. I read is leo, and you read is lees.
How do you say "I like to read" in Spanish?
Me gusta leer. The verb after gusta stays in the infinitive.
What is the past tense of leer?
Leí (I read), leíste (you read), leyó (he or she read). Between vowels the i turns into y.
How do you say "read out loud" in Spanish?
Leer en voz alta, as in ¿Puedes leer en voz alta?, can you read it out loud?
