Criminal Minds: How Many Languages Can Reid Speak?
Dr. Spencer Reid (Matthew Gray Gubler) is a man of many talents on "Criminal Minds," but he's not alone. Every single member of the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit has gifts that assist the team. Penelope Garcia (Kirsten Vangsness) is a master technician and hacker, David Rossi (Joe Mantegna) is an expert negotiator and interrogator, Dr. Tara Lewis (Aisha Tyler) specializes in forensic psychology, and Derek Morgan (Shemar Moore) is military-trained.
Since the beginning of the series, Reid stood out on another level of expertise and intellect, which set him apart from the BAU team. He was a child prodigy, graduating high school at 12-years-old with an incredibly high IQ. He also reads 20,000 words per minute and has an eidetic memory, meaning he can remember information or experiences with a lot of detail. Anyone with that kind of mind picks up and retains new information with relative ease, so learning something like a new language wouldn't be too much of a problem. Reid proves this theory correct at multiple points in "Criminal Minds," but given his abilities, how many languages can he really speak?
Reid can understand more languages than he can speak
Including English, Reid has spoken about four languages throughout "Criminal Minds," and according to some fans on Reddit, he understands far more. User real_mediageek noted that he had spoken Latin (likely due to his mother's previous job as a professor in 15th-century literature) and Korean to assist in BAU cases. User fluffywhitething also mentioned his knowledge and affinity for the Russian language, which he admitted he was unable to speak or understand in Season 2 but is later seen watching a five-hour Russian film without subtitles in Season 6's "Sense Memory."
In Season 10's "Rock Creek Park," Reid also understands a woman speaking the African language Yoruba. According to other fans, the agent can also understand Spanish, and user Illyria_uk noted a moment in Season 11 where Reid also comprehends German. It is incredibly impressive that in the time we see Reid on "Criminal Minds," he can understand seven different languages and speak four of them. It's possible Reid taught himself these languages, given what we already know about his reading ability, intellect, and eidetic memory. Either way, he has served as an incredible asset to the team on multiple occasions, and we wouldn't be surprised if he picked up new languages since the last time we saw him.