[lasîːt]
CilmeOriginally the iterative form (with ablaut) of an earlier verb lest, used with respect to birds (“to pick with one's beak”; cf. Lithuanian lèsti, and the related lēst “to calculate”), from Proto-Baltic *les-tei, *lest-ti, from Proto-Indo-European *les- (“to pick, to gather”), perhaps derived from the stem *el- (“to bend”), via a meaning such as “to pick (something) while bending down.” The later meaning “to read” came by analogy to German lesen, which has both meanings, itself also influenced by Latin legō (“to read; to collect, to gather”). A simultaneous change in case marking also occurred: from lasīt grāmatā burtus “to pick/read letters in a book” (like lasīt mežā ogas “to pick berries in the forest”) to lasīt grāmatā “to read in a book” and finally lasīt grāmatu “to read a book,” with the accusative form grāmatu of grāmata “book.” Cognates include Lithuanian lasýti (“to pick berries, mushrooms”), Gothic 𐌻𐌹𐍃𐌰𐌽 (lisan), Old High German lësan (“to pick up, to gather”), German lesen (“to pick (grapes); to read”), Hittite [Term?] (/lis-/), [Term?] (/les-/, “to pick (from somewhere)”).
- transitiveto read (to perceive and understand written language, a word, sentence, text, etc.)
“prast lasīt un rakstīt” — to know how to read and write
“lasīt par arhitektūru” — to read about architecture
“lasīt daiļliteratūru” — to read fiction
- transitiveto read (to understand the meaning of symbols, signs, pictures, plans, etc.)
“lasīt rasējumu” — to read the blueprints
“lasīt notis, partitūru” — to read notes (or sheet music), a (musical) score
“lasīt pēdas sniegā” — to read footprints in the snow
- transitiveto read (to sense, to perceive through its external manifestations) (of mental states)
“lasīt domas” — to read (or guess) (someone's) thoughts
“lasīt dvēselē, sirdī” — to read in (someone's) soul, heart (i.e. to understand someone's feelings)
“es lasu viņa sejā nožēlu un to, ka viņš jūtas ļoti nepatīkami” — I read the regret in his face, and the fact that he feels very uncomfortable
- transitiveto read, to lecture (to express, to communicate, to explain (a topic) in a lecture, presentation, etc.; to teach a topic (e.g., at a university)) (of topics, subjects)
“lasīt leksikogrāfiju” — to teach (lit. read) lexicography
“etnogrāfijas kurss Latvijas Universitātē līdz 1938. gadam netika lasīts” — the ethnography course of the University of Latvia was not taught (lit. read) until 1938
“pašlaik dzejnieks jau lasa lekciju universitātē par mūsdienu kritikas jautājumiem” — the poet currently reads lectures (or teaches) at the university on contemporary issues of criticism
- transitiveto read, to recite (to read aloud, following the meter and rhyme) (of poems)
“aktieri lasīja dzeju” — the actors read (or recited) poetry
“Lidija Freimane vācu skatītājiem viņu dzimtajā valodā lasīja Plūdoņa “Atraitnes dēlu”” — Lidija Freimane read (or recited) Plūdonis' “The Widow's Son” to the German audience in their native language (i.e. in German)
- transitiveto pick, to collect, by plucking or from the ground, usually one at a time
“lasīt ogas, sēnes” — to pick berries, mushrooms
“lasīt nokritušos ābolus” — to pick the fallen apples
“lasīt mežā žagarus” — to pick, gather twigs in the forest
- transitiveto pick from, to take out of (somewhere), usually one at a time
“lasīt ārā graudus no pelavām” — to pick, take the grains (of wheat) from the chaff
“lasīt no kastes lielākos ābolus” — to pick, take the biggest apples from the crate
“lasīt grozā ābolus” — to pick apples (and put them) in a basket
- rare, transitiveto gather, to collect
“mana māte mazgāja buržujiem veļu un grīdas, lasīja pa pagalmiem lupatas, kaulus, pudeles, vecas kalošas” — my mother washed the bourgeois' clothes and floor, (and) collected rags, bones, bottles (and) old footwear from the courtyards
- rare, transitiveto gather (people)
“(viņš) kopā lasa pulku” — (he) gathers the regiment together
Formasconjugation(third-person) · lasu(present) · lasi(present) · lasa(present) · lasīju(past) · es(first-person, indicative, singular) · lasu(first-person, indicative, present, singular) · lasīju(first-person, indicative, past, singular) · lasīšu(first-person, future, indicative, singular) · -(first-person, imperative, singular) · tu(indicative, second-person, singular) · lasi(indicative, present, second-person, singular) · lasīji(indicative, past, second-person, singular) · lasīsi(future, indicative, second-person, singular) · lasi(imperative, second-person, singular) · viņš(indicative, singular, third-person) · viņa(indicative, singular, third-person) · lasa(indicative, present, singular, third-person) · lasīja(indicative, past, singular, third-person) · lasīs(future, indicative, singular, third-person)