This study aims to determine the sorption/desorption characteristics of heavy metal (Pb) on amorphous Al and Fe hydroxides synthetically prepared in the absence and presence of low (oxalate and citrate) and high (tannate) molecular weight organic ligands. Kinetics of Pb sorption and its desorption were also studied. Surface properties of the prepared Al and Fe hydroxide, Point of Zero Salt Effect (PZSE) and remaining charge (σ_p) at the same pH and cation exchange capacity (CEC) were used for interpretation of sorption/desorption characteristics. Pb/modified amorphous Al and Fe hydroxides system was chosen because Pb is a common soil pollutant and the predominant Al and Fe oxides phases in soils are often the amorphous species, which form under the influence of pedogenic environments including the presence of organic ligands. The results showed that at concentrations up to 0.4 Pb mmol/l, all added Pb was completely removed from the equilibrium solution. Regarding the oxalate and citrate ligands, their presence suppress the capacity of Al precipitates and enhanced that of Fe ones to sorb Pb. Although the capacity of all Al and Fe precipitates to sorb Pb significantly decreased as pH decreased from 7.0 to 5.5, Fe-Tan and Fe-Cit keep relatively high capacity. Lead sorption consists of fast initial reaction completed in few hours, followed by slow reaction conducted to the end of the experiment. The molar fraction of H⁺ released per ion Pb sorbed (HR/Sorb.Pb) varied as the absorbent and sorption density varied and ranged from 1:1 to higher than 2:1. Also, the ratios (HR/Sorb.Pb) increased with the reaction period and ranged from 0.3 to 2.2:1. These different stoichiometries and the delaying of H⁺ release, refer to formation of different complexes between Pb and absorbents; an intermediate one with no H⁺ release may be formed at the beginning; followed by the formation of mono-dentate and bi-dentate ones. Only small portions of Pb previously sorbed on Al and Fe precipitates at pH 7.0 were reversible. The reversibility increased as sorption density increased and pH decreased. As residence time increased, sorbed Pb, in particular at pH 7.0, was nearly irreversible over a desorption period of 24 h, which indicate the transformation of adsorbed Pb. Pb sorption/desorption characteristics on amorphous Al and Fe precipitates were highly dependent on surface properties, PZSE and σ_p. Fe-Tan, Fe-Cit and Al-Tan had high ability to sorb and sequester sorbed Pb over a wide range of pH, which indicated that these modified hydroxides could be produced and utilized for pollution prevention, remediation of the soil environment and decontamination of heavy metal polluted water.