What does lire in French mean?

What is the meaning of the word lire in French? The article explains the full meaning, pronunciation along with bilingual examples and instructions on how to use lire in French.

The word lire in French means read, read to, read, read, lira, be read, be read, be read, read, read, give your full attention, read like a book, read like an open book, read tea leaves, read 's mind, skim, read between the lines, read palms, lip-read, read on 's lips. To learn more, please see the details below.

Listen to pronunciation

Meaning of the word lire

read

verbe transitif (déchiffrer du texte)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Quel est le dernier livre que vous ayez lu ?
What was the last book you read?

read to

(raconter un texte) (story, text)

Tous les soirs, le jeune papa lisait une histoire à ses enfants. Maman, tu nous lis une histoire ?
Mummy, will you read us a story?

read

verbe intransitif (déchiffrer des mots écrits) (be literate)

(intransitive verb: Verb not taking a direct object--for example, "She jokes." "He has arrived.")
Mon fils n'a que 6 ans mais il sait déjà lire.
My son is only six, but he can already read.

read

verbe intransitif (se divertir avec des livres) (enjoy books)

(intransitive verb: Verb not taking a direct object--for example, "She jokes." "He has arrived.")
Mathieu n'a jamais aimé lire.
Matthew has never liked reading.

lira

nom féminin (unité monétaire) (historical)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
La lire était une monnaie italienne.
The lira was the currency unit of Italy.

be read

verbe pronominal (se comprendre)

Ce texte peut se lire de différentes façons.
This text can be read in a variety of ways.

be read

verbe pronominal (être lu)

Les livres policiers se lisent très rapidement.
Detective novels are a quick read.

be read

verbe pronominal (se voir) (figurative)

De l'inquiétude se lisait sur les visages à l'énonciation des résultats.
Their anxiety was visible as the results were announced.

read

verbe transitif (interpréter)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Ce texte peut être lu de différentes façons.
This text can be read in a variety of ways.

read

verbe transitif (décrypter) (analyse)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Il n'est pas facile de lire une échographie sans expérience.
It isn't easy to read an ultrasound without experience.

give your full attention

locution verbale (lire en prenant le temps de réfléchir)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Je suis libérée de mes soucis, sans contrainte, je vais pouvoir lire mon livre à tête reposée.

read like a book, read like an open book

(pouvoir prédire les actions de [qqn])

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")

read tea leaves

locution verbale (prédire par le marc)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")

read 's mind

(deviner ce que [qqn] pense)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")

skim

locution verbale (lire rapidement, survoler)

(transitive verb: Verb taking a direct object--for example, "Say something." "She found the cat.")
Comme l'article ne portait pas sur un sujet qui m'intéressait, je me suis contenté de le lire en diagonale.

read between the lines

locution verbale (comprendre les choses sous-entendues) (figurative)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Les diplomates sont habitués à savoir lire entre les lignes.

read palms

(prédire l'avenir à [qqn] selon ses paumes)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")

lip-read

locution verbale (interpréter les mouvements de la bouche) (UK)

(intransitive verb: Verb not taking a direct object--for example, "She jokes." "He has arrived.")

read on 's lips

locution verbale (interpréter les mouvements d'une bouche)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")

Let's learn French

So now that you know more about the meaning of lire in French, you can learn how to use them through selected examples and how to read them. And remember to learn the related words that we suggest. Our website is constantly updating with new words and new examples so you can look up the meanings of other words you don't know in French.

Do you know about French

French (le français) is a Romance language. Like Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish, it comes from popular Latin, once used in the Roman Empire. A French-speaking person or country can be called a "Francophone". French is the official language in 29 countries. French is the fourth most spoken native language in the European Union. French ranks third in the EU, after English and German, and is the second most widely taught language after English. The majority of the world's French-speaking population lives in Africa, with about 141 million Africans from 34 countries and territories who can speak French as a first or second language. French is the second most widely spoken language in Canada, after English, and both are official languages at the federal level. It is the first language of 9.5 million people or 29% and the second language of 2.07 million people or 6% of the entire population of Canada. In contrast to other continents, French has no popularity in Asia. Currently, no country in Asia recognizes French as an official language.