読む · godan verb (-mu)
| Form | Positive | Negative |
|---|---|---|
| Dictionary | 読む | 読まない |
| Polite | 読みます | 読みません |
| Past polite | 読みました | 読みませんでした |
| Past | 読んだ | 読まなかった |
| Te-form | 読んで | 読まないで |
| Desire | 読みたい | 読みたくない |
| Potential | 読める | 読めない |
| Passive | 読まれる | 読まれない |
| Causative | 読ませる | 読ませない |
| Causative passive | 読ませられるalso 読まされる | 読ませられないalso 読まされない |
| Volitional | 読もう | |
| Polite volitional | 読みましょう | |
| Imperative | 読め | 読むな |
| Conditional | 読めば | 読まなければ |
| Tara conditional | 読んだら | 読まなかったら |
godan verb (-mu), transitive verb
General act of reading text, books, or written material.
毎朝、新聞を読む。
I read the newspaper every morning.
この本を読んだことがありますか。
Have you ever read this book?
godan verb (-mu), transitive verb
Used for reciting or chanting aloud, especially sutras or poetry.
お坊さんがお経を読む。
The monk chants a sutra.
godan verb (-mu), transitive verb
predict; guess; read (thoughts)
Figurative use: to read a situation, someone's mind, or the future; to divine or foresee.
彼の表情から気持ちを読むのは難しい。
It's hard to read his feelings from his expression.
占い師が手相を読んでくれた。
A fortune-teller read my palm.
godan verb (-mu), transitive verb
pronounce; read (a kanji)
To pronounce or read a character aloud, especially kanji.
この漢字は何と読むのですか。
How do you read this kanji?
godan verb (-mu), transitive verb
read (a meter, graph, music); tell (the time); decipher
To interpret or read non-textual information: meters, graphs, music scores, clocks, or codes.
検針員がガスメーターを読んだ。
The meter reader read the gas meter.
彼は楽譜を読むのが速い。
He is quick at reading sheet music.
godan verb (-mu), transitive verb
Now mostly used in idioms, e.g. サバを読む (to fudge numbers).
See also: サバを読む
「サバを読む」という表現で、数をごまかす意味になる。
In the expression サバを読む, it means to fudge the numbers.
godan verb (-mu), transitive verb
read with kun'yomi
To read a kanji using its native Japanese reading (kun'yomi). Also written as 訓む.
「山」を「やま」と読むのは訓読みです。
Reading 山 as やま is the kun'yomi.
He read the poem aloud.
How do you read this kanji?
She can read sheet music fluently.
He bought the stock by anticipating the market's future.
発音する means to pronounce any sound or word, while 読む in this sense specifically means to pronounce a written character or kanji.
解読する means to decode or decipher something difficult like a cipher, while 読む can mean simply to interpret ordinary readouts like a meter or graph.
数える is the standard verb for counting, while 読む in this old sense survives mainly in idioms like サバを読む for fudging numbers.
読む is the general verb 'to read' (anything), while 読書 is a noun specifically referring to the activity of reading books.
読む means to read thoroughly for comprehension, while 目を通す implies a quick, superficial glance over the text.
読む is the general verb for reading text, while 読み取る stresses actively extracting meaning or data from it.
読む is the general verb for reading in any manner, while 読み上げる specifically means to vocalize the text aloud for others to hear.
読む means to read text closely, whereas 閲覧 covers looking over or skimming documents without necessarily reading every word.
読む is the general verb for reading anything once, while 読み直す specifically means to read something a second time.
reading aloud; recitation
reading while standing; browsing without buying
reading and writing; literacy
read and understand; take in (meaning) · sense from cues; read (someone's) mind · read (a gauge, barcode, etc.); scan
reading; scanning
monotone reading; wooden delivery · reading Chinese classics without translation
countdown
finishing reading · one-shot; complete story; non-serialized story · breaks and pauses (in a sentence)
reading matter; reading material
reader (person) · card reader (in karuta) · composer (of a poem)
read and understand; interpret; read deeply · decipher; decode
read thoroughly; read repeatedly · read into; interpret extra meaning · take into consideration; factor in · load; read; fetch
substantial reading material; richness of content
foreseeing; anticipating; predicting the future · lookahead; prefetching · reading ahead
read aloud; read out; call out · finish reading; read through
reread; read again
worthwhile reading; substantial read
on reading; Chinese-derived reading
reading; readout
kun reading; native Japanese reading of a Chinese character
reread; read over again
script reading; scenario reading · avid reader; bookworm · reading a book; reading books
read out; retrieve (data)
read a kanji with a different pronunciation; substitute a reading · load; read (data) · change the wording; apply a different term
half-read; partially read; left unfinished
reading out and comparing; collation reading · script read-through; table read
preparatory reading; reading through in advance
Kyūjitai form; not in common use.