Reading to learn Spanish
Reading is one of the best ways to pick up vocabulary: me gusta leer (I like reading), estoy leyendo un libro en español. Watch the spelling: leyendo (not "leiendo") and leído with an accent.
Indicative tenses of leer
Facts and things that happen: the tenses you'll use most.
Present indicative
| yo | leoI read |
|---|---|
| tú | leesyou read |
| él/ella/usted | leehe/she reads |
| nosotros/as | leemoswe read |
| vosotros/as | leéisyou all read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | leenthey read |
Preterite indicative
| yo | leíI read |
|---|---|
| tú | leísteyou read |
| él/ella/usted | leyóhe/she read |
| nosotros/as | leímoswe read |
| vosotros/as | leísteisyou all read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | leyeronthey read |
Between two vowels the i becomes y: leyó, leyeron. Note the accents: leíste, leímos.
Imperfect indicative
| yo | leíaI used to read |
|---|---|
| tú | leíasyou used to read |
| él/ella/usted | leíahe/she used to read |
| nosotros/as | leíamoswe used to read |
| vosotros/as | leíaisyou all used to read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | leíanthey used to read |
Present continuous indicative
| yo | estoy leyendoI am reading |
|---|---|
| tú | estás leyendoyou are reading |
| él/ella/usted | está leyendohe/she is reading |
| nosotros/as | estamos leyendowe are reading |
| vosotros/as | estáis leyendoyou all are reading |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | están leyendothey are reading |
estar + gerund
Informal future indicative
| yo | voy a leerI am going to read |
|---|---|
| tú | vas a leeryou are going to read |
| él/ella/usted | va a leerhe/she is going to read |
| nosotros/as | vamos a leerwe are going to read |
| vosotros/as | vais a leeryou all are going to read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | van a leerthey are going to read |
ir a + infinitive
Future indicative
| yo | leeréI will read |
|---|---|
| tú | leerásyou will read |
| él/ella/usted | leeráhe/she will read |
| nosotros/as | leeremoswe will read |
| vosotros/as | leeréisyou all will read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | leeránthey will read |
Conditional indicative
| yo | leeríaI would read |
|---|---|
| tú | leeríasyou would read |
| él/ella/usted | leeríahe/she would read |
| nosotros/as | leeríamoswe would read |
| vosotros/as | leeríaisyou all would read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | leeríanthey would read |
Present perfect indicative
| yo | he leídoI have read |
|---|---|
| tú | has leídoyou have read |
| él/ella/usted | ha leídohe/she has read |
| nosotros/as | hemos leídowe have read |
| vosotros/as | habéis leídoyou all have read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | han leídothey have read |
haber (present) + past participle
Past perfect indicative
| yo | había leídoI had read |
|---|---|
| tú | habías leídoyou had read |
| él/ella/usted | había leídohe/she had read |
| nosotros/as | habíamos leídowe had read |
| vosotros/as | habíais leídoyou all had read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habían leídothey had read |
haber (imperfect) + past participle
Future perfect indicative
| yo | habré leídoI will have read |
|---|---|
| tú | habrás leídoyou will have read |
| él/ella/usted | habrá leídohe/she will have read |
| nosotros/as | habremos leídowe will have read |
| vosotros/as | habréis leídoyou all will have read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habrán leídothey will have read |
haber (future) + past participle
Conditional perfect indicative
| yo | habría leídoI would have read |
|---|---|
| tú | habrías leídoyou would have read |
| él/ella/usted | habría leídohe/she would have read |
| nosotros/as | habríamos leídowe would have read |
| vosotros/as | habríais leídoyou all would have read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | habrían leídothey would have read |
haber (conditional) + past participle
Subjunctive tenses of leer
Wishes, doubts, emotions and "if" sentences.
Present subjunctive
| yo | lea(that) I read |
|---|---|
| tú | leas(that) you read |
| él/ella/usted | lea(that) he/she reads |
| nosotros/as | leamos(that) we read |
| vosotros/as | leáis(that) you all read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | lean(that) they read |
Imperfect subjunctive
| yo | leyera / leyese(if) I read |
|---|---|
| tú | leyeras / leyeses(if) you read |
| él/ella/usted | leyera / leyese(if) he/she read |
| nosotros/as | leyéramos / leyésemos(if) we read |
| vosotros/as | leyerais / leyeseis(if) you all read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | leyeran / leyesen(if) they read |
Future subjunctive
| yo | leyere(if) I read |
|---|---|
| tú | leyeres(if) you read |
| él/ella/usted | leyere(if) he/she reads |
| nosotros/as | leyéremos(if) we read |
| vosotros/as | leyereis(if) you all read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | leyeren(if) they read |
rarely used: legal & formal texts
Present perfect subjunctive
| yo | haya leído(that) I have read |
|---|---|
| tú | hayas leído(that) you have read |
| él/ella/usted | haya leído(that) he/she has read |
| nosotros/as | hayamos leído(that) we have read |
| vosotros/as | hayáis leído(that) you all have read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hayan leído(that) they have read |
haber (present subj.) + past participle
Past perfect subjunctive
| yo | hubiera leído(if) I had read |
|---|---|
| tú | hubieras leído(if) you had read |
| él/ella/usted | hubiera leído(if) he/she had read |
| nosotros/as | hubiéramos leído(if) we had read |
| vosotros/as | hubierais leído(if) you all had read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hubieran leído(if) they had read |
haber (imperfect subj.) + past participle
Future perfect subjunctive
| yo | hubiere leído(if) I will have read |
|---|---|
| tú | hubieres leído(if) you will have read |
| él/ella/usted | hubiere leído(if) he/she will have read |
| nosotros/as | hubiéremos leído(if) we will have read |
| vosotros/as | hubiereis leído(if) you all will have read |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hubieren leído(if) they will have read |
rarely used: legal & formal texts
Imperative tenses of leer
Commands and instructions.
Affirmative imperative
| tú | leeread! |
|---|---|
| usted | learead! (formal) |
| nosotros/as | leamoslet's read! |
| vosotros/as | leedread! (you all) |
| ustedes | leanread! (you all, formal) |
Negative imperative
| tú | no leasdon't read! |
|---|---|
| usted | no leadon't read! (formal) |
| nosotros/as | no leamoslet's not read! |
| vosotros/as | no leáisdon't read! (you all) |
| ustedes | no leandon't read! (you all, formal) |
Practice leer
Two quick exercises. No sign-up, no app: just you and leer.
How to use leer
Leo un poco cada noche.
I read a bit every night.
¿Puedes leerlo en voz alta?
Can you read it out loud?
Lo leí en el periódico.
I read it in the newspaper.
Me encanta leer.
I love reading.
¡Me has leído la mente!
You've read my mind!
Example sentences with leer
- ¿Qué estás leyendo?What are you reading?
- Leemos el mismo libro.We're reading the same book.
- Ayer leí tu mensaje.Yesterday I read your message.
- De niño leía cómics.As a kid I used to read comics.
- Lo leeré mañana.I'll read it tomorrow.
- ¿Leerías este libro?Would you read this book?
- Lee las instrucciones.Read the instructions.
- ¿Has leído Don Quijote?Have you read Don Quixote?
Verbs like leer
Creer, caer and oír get the same y in the preterite: creyó, cayó, oyó.
Frequently asked questions about leer
Is leer regular or irregular?
Leer is mostly regular. Only the preterite (leyó, leyeron), the imperfect subjunctive (leyera), the gerund (leyendo) and the accents (leí, leído) change.
How do you conjugate leer in the present tense?
leo, lees, lee, leemos, leéis, leen.
How do you conjugate leer in the preterite?
leí, leíste, leyó, leímos, leísteis, leyeron.
Why is it "leyó" and not "leió"?
An unstressed i between two vowels becomes y: leyó, creyó, cayó.
What is the gerund of leer?
Leyendo: estoy leyendo (I'm reading).
What is the past participle of leer?
Leído, with an accent: he leído (I have read).
Free cheat sheet
All 18 tenses of leer, on one page.
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