Use read aloud when you'll say written words so others nearby can hear. The teacher asked the students to read their favorite passages aloud. For a short object, read aloud the first paragraph also works.
The words matter, not just your voice: read aloud is about written text, so it fits when you say sentences from a page so listeners can hear them. She read the poem aloud at the family dinner. Saying something you thought of on the spot isn't really reading it aloud; that's just saying it.
Reading only to yourself? Drop aloud: I read the letter twice. Adding it suggests an audience heard you.
Choosing the wording for your situation
Need the words heard in the room? Use read aloud: Please read aloud the first paragraph so we all hear it. Your wording tells listeners the reading is meant for their ears.
Reading to someone specific? Put the person first: She read aloud to her grandmother every evening. The to phrase shows who benefits, so your sentence signals care rather than performance.
Describing a past habit? Try As kids, we read aloud at dinner, one person per night. This frames it as a shared routine others listened to.
Making a request in class or a meeting? Say Could you read that aloud? It clearly asks for spoken delivery, unlike Could you read that?, which may end in silence.
In formal or written instructions, you'll sometimes see the object placed after aloud, as in The teacher asked the students to read aloud their favorite passages from the book. The more everyday pattern puts the object before aloud: read their favorite passages aloud.
Reading only to yourself? Drop aloud and write I read the recipe twice. Keeping aloud out matters because listeners take it as a signal that the words were meant for their ears. If you tell a friend I read the recipe aloud twice, they may picture you reciting it in the kitchen, so the plain form makes clear the reading stayed private.
When 'read out' fits better
If your sentence sounds formal or instructional, read aloud is the natural register: The priest read aloud from the scriptures during the service. The phrase carries a slightly literary tone, which suits lessons, ceremonies, and written instructions better than quick announcements.
For a one-word announcement in a meeting, that tone can feel heavy. She read aloud the agenda item sounds stiff where She read out the agenda item sounds everyday, especially to British ears. Read aloud belongs to register rather than to grammar: it carries a slightly literary, instructional tone, so it fits naturally when someone reads from a text in a lesson, a ceremony, or a set of written instructions. In a quick spoken announcement, it can sound like you are performing a formal text rather than simply passing on information.