Gerund leer or la lectura?

Question

Leer ...... to read (verb) I like to read ... Me gusta leer.

La lectura ...... reading (noun) I like reading .... Me gusta la lectura.

answered by JulianChivi on Apr 18, 2011

In my lesson on the gerund and the present participle it states that you cannot use the gerund form as a noun in spanish. I have looked at a lot of the posts including the one as quoted above and it seems there is a lot of confusion on this. I read a lot of the sentences when the "word of the day" was used, "la lectura", and quite a number of the sentences were corrected to change from la lectura to leer since in spanish conversation leer is a lot more common according to bill1111.

In the example from my lesson it shows "Leer es bueno." = Reading is good. Therefore I am to assume that it is correct to write "Lectura es bueno" but you usually do not speak it that way? It may have something to do with using "ser"?

I know this has been asked a lot but it is still not very clear and I am sure there are a lot of students who still need a clearer explanation.

Gracias

This is a good question. I'll be watching the answers. :) - 0066c384, Nov 8, 2011

Great question! - Alicia-53, Nov 8, 2011

Answer 1

"I went to a bookstore to hear a reading of some poetry"

... This noun sense of reading is what Lectura means.

Reading pleases me (Me gusta leer) is somewhat different, no? Think about that...

If I substitute "lecture" in your 1st example it makes total sense otherwise it is still the act (action) of reading...ummm - foxluv, Nov 8, 2011

Answer 2

Hi Foxluv... What a great question.

OK, in English the gerund, or present participle of the verb, ends in -ing; and in Spanish with -ando, or -iendo. In English, we use the gerund as a noun: "Reading is good.' This is not done in Spanish.

In Spanish, you can however use the infinitive as a noun: "Leer es bueno," just as you do in English ("To read is good.) You can also, obviously, use a noun as a noun, and that is why you can say "Lectura es bueno." Lectura is not a gerund, it is a noun that, in English, means "reading."

I hope this is helpful, and doesn't seem all pedantic.

Thank goodness I am not going off my rocker! But...in conversation what would you say? - foxluv, Nov 8, 2011

Answer 3

"Lectura" is not a form of verb, it's a noun that means" the act of read". So, you can say " La lectura es..."

The verb is: Leer- leyendo- leído (infinitive-gerund- participle)

Te dejo un par de ejemplos:

1. "La lectura enriquece el alma, pero principalmente la mente"
2. "Leer enriquece el alma, pero principalmente la mente"
3. "El último libro que me leí, tenía una lectura tediosa"

I don't know exactly if this is your doubt.