# Read – readable types The `Read` class supports reading and conversion of string representations of values into actual types using the `read` method. All the basic types of Haskell are also instances of the `Read` class. Note that we sometimes have to specify the type to be read in cases where the intended type cannot be inferred: ```haskell ghci> read "False" *** Exception: Prelude.read: no parse ghci> read "False" :: Bool False ``` That is, in the first case, the compiler does not know whether to read `"False"` as a type of `String` or `Bool`, so it throws an exception, while in the second case, we explicitly state that we want to read it as a `Bool`. However, if we had some additional boolean function (e.g. negation) to be called on the read argument, the compiler would be able to automatically infer the wanted type: ```haskell ghci> not $ read "False" True ``` --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://haskell.hpmeducation.com/type-classes/basic-classes/read-readable-types.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.