8 N‑COUNT [adj N ] If you say that a book or magazine is a good read , you mean that it is very enjoyable to read. □ His latest novel is a good read.
9 VERB If something is read in a particular way, it is understood or interpreted in that way. □ [be V -ed + as ] The play is being widely read as an allegory of imperialist conquest. □ [V n adv/prep] South Africans were praying last night that he has read the situation correctly.
10 VERB If you read someone's mind or thoughts, you know exactly what they are thinking without them telling you. □ [V n] As if he could read her thoughts, Benny said, 'You're free to go any time you like.'
11 VERB If you can read someone or you can read their gestures, you can understand what they are thinking or feeling by the way they behave or the things they say. □ [V n] If you have to work in a team you must learn to read people.
12 VERB If someone who is trying to talk to you with a radio transmitter says, 'Do you read me?', they are asking you if you can hear them. □ [V n] We read you loud and clear. Over.
13 VERB When you read a measuring device, you look at it to see what the figure or measurement on it is. □ [V n] It is essential that you are able to read a thermometer.
14 VERB If a measuring device reads a particular amount, it shows that amount. □ [V amount] Cook for 1-1¼ hours for medium, or until the meat thermometer reads 55°C.
15 VERB If you read a subject at university, you study it. [BRIT , FORMAL ] □ [V n] She read French and German at Cambridge University. □ [V + for ] He is now reading for a maths degree at Surrey University. in AM, use major , study
16 PHRASE If you take something as read , you accept it as true or right and therefore feel that it does not need to be discussed or proved. □ We took it as read that he must have been a foreign agent.
17 → see also reading
18 to read between the lines → see line
▸ read into PHRASAL VERB If you read a meaning into something, you think it is there although it may not actually be there. □ [V n P n] The addict often reads disapproval into people's reactions to him even where it does not exist. □ [V n P n] It would be wrong to try to read too much into such a light-hearted production. [Also V P n n]
▸ read out PHRASAL VERB If you read out a piece of writing, you say it aloud. □ [V P n] He's obliged to take his turn at reading out the announcements. □ [V n P ] Shall I read them out?
▸ read up on PHRASAL VERB If you read up on a subject, you read a lot about it so that you become informed about it. □ [V P P n] She spent time in the library, reading up on her new employers. SYNONYMS read VERB 1
scan: She scanned the advertisement pages of the newspapers.
pore over: We spent hours poring over travel brochures.
skim: She skimmed the pages quickly, then read them again more carefully.
glance at/through: I never even glanced at the political page of a daily paper.
read|able /riː dəb ə l/
1 ADJ If you say that a book or article is readable , you mean that it is enjoyable and easy to read. □ This is an impeccably researched and very readable book.
2 ADJ A piece of writing that is readable is written or printed clearly and can be read easily. □ My secretary translated my almost illegible writing into a readable script.
read|er ◆◆◇ /riː də r / (readers )
1 N‑COUNT The readers of a newspaper, magazine, or book are the people who read it. □ These texts give the reader an insight into the Chinese mind.
2 N‑COUNT A reader is a person who reads, especially one who reads for pleasure. □ Thanks to that job I became an avid reader.
3 N‑COUNT A reader is a book to help children to learn to read, or to help people to learn a foreign language. It contains passages of text, and often exercises to give practice in reading and writing.
read|er|ship /riː də r ʃ I p/ (readerships ) N‑COUNT [usu sing] The readership of a book, newspaper, or magazine is the number or type of people who read it. □ Its readership has grown to over 15,000 subscribers.
read|ily /re d I li/
1 ADV [ADV with v] If you do something readily , you do it in a way which shows that you are very willing to do it. □ I asked her if she would allow me to interview her, and she readily agreed.
2 ADV [ADV adj, ADV with v] You also use readily to say that something can be done or obtained quickly and easily. For example, if you say that something can be readily understood, you mean that people can understand it quickly and easily. □ The components are readily available in hardware shops.
readi|ness /re d I nəs/
1 N‑UNCOUNT If someone is very willing to do something, you can talk about their readiness to do it. □ …their readiness to co-operate with the new U.S. envoy.
2 N‑UNCOUNT [usu in N ] If you do something in readiness for a future event, you do it so that you are prepared for that event. □ [+ for ] Security tightened in the capital in readiness for the president's arrival.
read|ing ◆◇◇ /riː d I ŋ/ (readings )
1 N‑UNCOUNT Reading is the activity of reading books. □ I have always loved reading. □ …young people who find reading and writing difficult.