Meaning & use
reading between the lines
Last updated
Meanings
phraseidiom
Understanding what someone really means from hints and tone rather than from what they actually say.
Grammar: Used as a noun phrase after verbs like be, take, or require: It takes reading between the lines.
Patterns
- by reading between the lines
- it takes reading between the lines
- be good at reading between the lines
Her email sounded cheerful, but reading between the lines, I think she was hurt.
By reading between the lines of the report, journalists guessed that the company was in trouble.
He never says he is unhappy, so you have to do a lot of reading between the lines.
phraseidiom
The act of looking for a hidden or unstated message in something written or said.
Grammar: Often follows prepositions: a lot of reading between the lines, some reading between the lines.
Patterns
- a lot of reading between the lines
- some careful reading between the lines
The letter was polite, but a little reading between the lines showed real anger.
Careful reading between the lines revealed that the deal had already failed.
Common combinations
- take some reading between the lines
- You'll need to take some reading between the lines to see what he really wants.
- do a lot of reading between the lines
- With a boss like that, you do a lot of reading between the lines.
- by reading between the lines
- By reading between the lines, we worked out that the project was cancelled.
- good at reading between the lines
- She is very good at reading between the lines of official statements.
- without reading between the lines
- Without reading between the lines, the message sounds completely friendly.
Synonyms and how they differ
- infer
- A verb meaning to reach a conclusion from evidence; it names the mental act, while reading between the lines describes the whole skill or process.
- pick up on something
- Informal and means to notice a hint; it is narrower and does not necessarily involve working out a hidden meaning.
- read something into something
- Similar but often negative: it suggests seeing a meaning that may not really be there, whereas reading between the lines suggests a meaning that is genuinely implied.
Opposites
Word family
- read between the lines phrase
- The base idiom, used as a verb phrase: You have to read between the lines.
- read verb
- To look at and understand written words, or to understand a situation.
- reader noun
- A person who reads, especially one who reads a particular text.
Commonly confused: reading between the lines or read between the lines? reading between the lines or between the lines?
reading between the lines vs read between the lines
This is the verb form used in a sentence (You must read between the lines); 'reading between the lines' is the -ing form used as a noun phrase, as in It takes reading between the lines.
reading between the lines vs between the lines
On its own this is just a prepositional phrase about physical position; the full idiom needs the word reading (or read) to carry the meaning of finding a hidden message.
Practice
Her note said she was 'fine', but reading between the lines, I think she ______.
Choose one answer.
Reading between the lines means working out the unstated meaning, so 'was actually upset' fits the hidden message. The other options describe physical actions with the note and have nothing to do with interpreting a hint.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “reading between the lines”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.