INDEX:
1. to learn how to do something, or learn about something
2. to learn something so that you can remember it exactly
3. someone who is learning something
4. to learn about things by experiencing them in your life
RELATED WORDS
see also
↑ TEACH
↑ STUDY
↑ SUBJECT
↑ CAN/CAN'T
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1. to learn how to do something, or learn about something
▷ learn /lɜːʳn/ [intransitive/transitive verb]
to learn how to do something, or to learn about a subject, especially by being taught or trained :
▪ How long have you been learning German?
▪ The CD is specially designed to let children learn at their own pace.
learn to do something
▪ His daughter’s learning to drive.
▪ William learned to read when he was four.
learn how to do something
learn a method or skill
▪ On this course, you will learn how to deal with communication problems.
▪ How long did it take you to learn how to do this?
learn about
▪ Before you sail, you need to learn about basic boat controls.
▪ Our children attend the group twice a week to learn about Sikhism.
▷ study /ˈstʌdi/ [intransitive/transitive verb]
to learn about a subject by reading books and going to classes at a school or university :
study English/Biology/Music etc
▪ Less than 10% of girls choose to study Science at school.
▪ She’s studying Music at Berkeley College in Boston.
▪ My parents first met when dad was studying in England.
study to be a doctor/lawyer/accountant etc
▪ He’s studying to be a lawyer.
▪ Dad thinks I should study to be a doctor, but I’m not interested in medicine.
study for a test/diploma/an examination
▪ ‘Is Ian coming with us?’ ‘He can’t - he’s studying for his exams.’
▪ Alan hardly studied for the test, but he still passed.
▷ train /treɪn/ [intransitive verb]
to learn the skills and get the experience that you need in order to do a job :
▪ Chris trained at an airbase in Honduras.
train to be a hairdresser/teacher/pilot/nurse etc
▪ Julie is training to be a nurse.
▪ Her husband trained to be an auto mechanic, but he can’t find a job.
train for a job/career/occupation
▪ Melanie trained for a career in music, but switched to photography in her early thirties.
▪ We want to encourage people who left school early to train for better jobs.
▷ pick up /ˌpɪk ˈʌp/ [transitive phrasal verb] informal
to learn something easily, without making much effort or having lessons :
pick up something
▪ I picked up a few words of Turkish when I was in Istanbul.
pick something up
▪ The rules are really easy - you’ll pick them up.
▪ Roy’s a bright little boy, and he picks things up really quickly.
▷ get the hang of /ˌget ðə ˈhæŋ ɒv/ [verb phrase] spoken
to learn how to do something that is fairly complicated :
▪ Using the software isn’t difficult once you get the hang of it.
▪ It took me ages to get the hang of using chopsticks.
▪ That’s it. You’re getting the hang of it now.
▷ master /ˈmɑːstəʳǁˈmæ-/ [transitive verb]
to learn a skill or a language completely so that you have no difficulty with it :
▪ It takes years to master the art of weaving.
▪ She soon got to know the local customs and eventually mastered the language.
▪ Children have usually mastered the concepts of weight and length by the age of 8.
▷ familiarize yourself with also familiarise British /fəˈmɪliəraɪz jɔːʳself wɪð/ [verb phrase]
to learn about a subject, or how to do something, especially by reading books, notices, instructions etc, because you know you are going to need this knowledge in the future :
▪ She prepared for the interview by familiarizing herself with all aspects of the company’s work.
▪ You must familiarize yourself with the evacuation procedure in case of a fire.
2. to learn something so that you can remember it exactly
▷ learn /lɜːʳn/ [transitive verb]
to learn facts, words, or numbers, especially at school, so that you can remember them exactly :
▪ What songs have you learnt at school, then?
▪ I’m going to try to learn 12 new words each week.
▪ Do you think you can learn this tune for Friday’s performance?
learn something (off) by heart
learn something so that you can repeat it exactly without reading it
▪ We had to learn a lot of poetry by heart when we were children.
▪ Dad taught us a Sanskrit prayer, and we had to learn it off by heart and say it every day.
learn your lines
learn the words that you have to say in a play
▪ I’ve been trying to learn my lines, but I haven’t gotten very far.
learn something by rote
to learn something by repeating it without having to understand it, especially in a class
▪ The guide sounded as if he had learnt his speech by rote.
▪ If you have a good memory you can learn things by rote, but can you apply it in practice?
▷ memorize also memorise British /ˈmeməraɪz/ [transitive verb]
to learn numbers or words so well that you can remember them exactly :
▪ Don’t write your password down, memorize it.
▪ He was only four when he memorized Martin Luther King’s ‘I have a dream’ speech.
▪ I recited the poem she had asked me to memorize.
▷ commit something to memory /kəˌmɪt something tə ˈmem ə ri/ [verb phrase] formal
to learn something, especially something long, so that you remember every word or detail of it :
▪ Some really dedicated fans have committed entire passages of the movie to memory.
▪ Sometimes, conductors have to commit complete scores to memory.
3. someone who is learning something
▷ student /ˈstjuːd ə ntǁˈstuː-/ [countable noun]
someone who is studying at a school, college, or university :
▪ She’s a student at Cornell University.
▪ extra help for disabled students
▪ He was accused of attacking a fellow student.
▪ a farewell party for the overseas students
law/medical/engineering etc student
▪ Law students always have a lot of work to do.
student nurse/teacher
someone who is studying to be a nurse or a teacher
▪ What was the social life like when you were a student nurse?
mature student
British a student who is over the age of 25, and who has worked before coming to university or college
▪ We have a large number of mature students here, some with small children.
▷ trainee /ˌtreɪˈniː◂/ [countable noun]
someone who is learning a skill while working in a company or organization :
▪ The new class of trainees was highly motivated.
▪ I started out as a trainee on the trading floor, earning around $25,000 a year.
trainee accountant/reporter/salesman etc
▪ I got a job as a trainee reporter on the ‘Daily Star’.
▪ He spent three years as a trainee manager before getting his present position.
▷ beginner /bɪˈgɪnəʳ/ [countable noun]
someone who has recently started to learn something :
▪ Japanese classes for beginners
▪ The tennis club welcomes beginners as well as more advanced players.
▪ As a beginner, she needs quite a lot of encouragement.
▷ apprentice /əˈprentɪs, əˈprentəs/ [countable noun]
someone who is learning all the skills that they need in order to do a job, especially a job that they do with their hands :
▪ When I finish classes, I’m hoping to land a summer job as a chef’s apprentice.
apprentice electrician/bricklayer/hairdresser etc
▪ I worked as an apprentice electrician for 18 months.
apprenticeship []
the period of time when you are an apprentice :
serve an apprenticeship
▪ A ‘Meister’ in Germany serves a nine-year apprenticeship before he can run his own shop.
apprentice to
▪ John recalled his apprenticeship to a blacksmith in the early years of the Second World War.
▷ learner /ˈlɜːʳnəʳ/ [countable noun]
someone who is learning a particular subject or skill, especially a foreign language and usually in a school :
▪ A good teacher holds the learner’s interest and stimulates them to find out more.
slow/fast/quick learner
▪ James was a fast learner, and was soon better at tennis than his coach.
▪ You’re a quick learner! It took me ages to get the hang of it.
4. to learn about things by experiencing them in your life
▷ learn /lɜːʳn/ [intransitive/transitive verb]
to learn how you should behave or how to deal with situations, because of experiences you have had in your life :
learn (that)
▪ I soon learned that it was best to keep quiet.
▪ I had learnt that as a woman, if your talents are ignored at work, you must be assertive.
learn to do something
▪ Gradually, I learned to trust her.
▪ By sharing their problems, sufferers of the disease learn to cope with the symptoms.
learn something from something
▪ Have you learned anything from the experience?
learn from your mistakes
remember mistakes you have made, and be careful not to make them again
▪ What is important is to learn from our mistakes, so that we don’t repeat them.
learn your lesson
to learn from a bad experience not to do the same thing again
▪ She’d been stupid, but she’d learned her lesson.
▪ He felt that his son needed to learn some hard lessons about life.
▪ There are important lessons to be learned from this election defeat.
learn something the hard way
learn something by having an unpleasant experience
▪ Never lend money to your friends - that’s something I learnt the hard way.
▪ There are no shortcuts in this industry. I learned that the hard way this week.