INDEX:
1. to teach someone a skill or how to do something
2. to teach in a school, college etc as your job
3. to teach people how they should think or behave
4. the work of a teacher
5. someone who teaches
6. designed or intended to teach something
RELATED WORDS
see also
↑ LEARN
↑ SUBJECT
↑ EXPLAIN
↑ INSTRUCTIONS
↑ SCHOOL/UNIVERSITY
◆◆◆
1. to teach someone a skill or how to do something
▷ teach /tiːtʃ/ [transitive verb]
▪ I’ve always wanted to learn to ski - could you teach me?
teach something to somebody
▪ It took us several hours to teach all the dance moves to the girls.
teach somebody something
▪ Grandpa taught me a new card trick.
teach somebody (how) to do something
▪ Who taught you to drive?
▪ My mother taught me how to cook.
▷ train /treɪn/ [transitive verb]
to teach someone the practical skills and knowledge that they need to do a job :
▪ A lot of employers don’t train their staff properly.
train somebody to do something
▪ All employees will be trained to use the new computer system.
▪ The dog was trained to detect illegal drugs.
train somebody in something
▪ We train people in skills such as typing and business administration.
trained [adjective usually before noun]
▪ The service is run by trained nurses.
fully trained
▪ All the staff are fully trained and willing to help in any way they can.
▷ coach /kəʊtʃ/ [intransitive/transitive verb]
to teach a person or a team the skills they need for a sport :
▪ He seems to enjoy coaching children.
▪ We need someone to coach the school team.
▪ As well as teaching French, Martin coached tennis in his spare time.
▷ instruct /ɪnˈstrʌkt/ [transitive verb]
to teach someone about something, especially a practical subject or skill, by explaining it and showing them what to do :
▪ The person who instructed you obviously didn’t know much about map-reading!
instruct somebody in something
▪ New recruits are instructed in marching and the handling of weapons.
▷ show somebody the ropes /ˌʃəʊ somebody ðə ˈrəʊps/ [verb phrase] informal
to show someone how to do something such as a job that they are new to :
▪ You’ll need someone with you for the first few days to show you the ropes.
▪ Susan will show you the ropes and answer any questions that you have.
2. to teach in a school, college etc as your job
▷ teach /tiːtʃ/ [intransitive/transitive verb]
to teach in a school, college etc as your job :
▪ I taught for a year in France.
▪ She got a job teaching German at a local school.
▪ I prefer teaching the older children.
▪ Miss Himes teaches the youngest class, the four- and five-year-olds.
teach something to somebody
▪ She teaches English to Italian students.
▪ Teaching literature to the fifth grade is no joke!
teach somebody something
▪ You must remember Mr Hughes - he used to teach us history.
teach school
American to teach in a school
▪ My Dad taught school in New York.
▷ lecture /ˈlektʃəʳ/ [intransitive verb]
to teach in a university or college :
▪ Before his retirement he lectured at the Institut Pasteur.
lecture on
▪ She lectures on Shakespeare at Edinburgh University.
lecture in
▪ For many years Dr Thornton lectured in Economics at University College.
▷ give /gɪv/ [transitive verb]
if someone gives a class, lecture, or course, they teach it :
▪ Dr Hebden will be giving a lecture later this week on the role of women in the economy.
▪ Who’s giving the class this afternoon?
3. to teach people how they should think or behave
▷ teach /tiːtʃ/ [transitive verb]
to teach someone, especially a child or young person, how to behave or what to believe :
teach somebody to do something
▪ When I was young, children were taught to treat older people with respect.
teach somebody (that)
▪ Joe’s mother taught him that he could do anything, if only he tried hard enough.
teach somebody something
▪ Parents need to teach their children the difference between right and wrong.
▷ educate /ˈedjʊkeɪtǁˈedʒə-/ [transitive verb]
to teach people, especially over a long period of time, about things that will be helpful to them in life :
▪ We need to educate people so that they understand the importance of a good, healthy diet.
educate somebody about something
▪ Youngsters must be educated about the dangers of drugs.
educate somebody to do something
▪ What we’re trying to do is to educate young people to be responsible citizens.
▷ bring up /ˌbrɪŋ ˈʌp/ [transitive phrasal verb]
to teach your child or children how to behave or think as they grow up :
bring somebody up to do something
▪ I was brought up to spend money carefully and save as much as I could.
▪ Stan had been brought up to believe that a man should work to support his wife.
bring somebody up in the belief/conviction/knowledge that
▪ Alison was brought up in the belief that she was in some way superior to other children.
▷ instil British /instill American /ɪnˈstɪl/ [transitive verb] formal
to teach someone a way of thinking or behaving, especially relating to morals, good manners, over a long period of time :
▪ We aim to teach the children discipline and instil a sense of duty.
instil something in/into somebody
▪ We have tried to instil good manners in our children from an early age.
▪ She instilled tremendous enthusiasm into all her students.
▷ brainwash /ˈbreɪnwɒʃǁ-wɔːʃ, -wɑːʃ/ [transitive verb]
to teach someone to believe something by continuously repeating it over a long period of time, especially when they are tired, weak, or confused, so that they accept it without questioning it :
▪ Mrs Davis accused the cult of having brainwashed her daughter.
brainwash somebody into doing something
▪ For years we’ve been brainwashed by advertising into buying more and more things that we don’t need.
brainwashing [uncountable noun]
▪ Brainwashing techniques include preventing the person from sleeping and depriving them of any human contact.
▷ condition /kənˈdɪʃ ə n/ [transitive verb]
to make someone think or react in a particular way by influencing their attitudes or reactions over a long period of time :
condition somebody to do something
▪ He was conditioned to obey his father at all times.
condition somebody into doing something
▪ The people have been conditioned into thinking that anyone from outside their community represents a threat to them.
conditioning [uncountable noun]
▪ It can take years of therapy to undo early childhood conditioning.
▷ indoctrinate /ɪnˈdɒktrɪneɪt, ɪnˈdɒktrəneɪtǁɪnˈdɑːk-/ [transitive verb]
to teach someone to accept a particular set of religious or political beliefs, without allowing them to discuss it, doubt it, or consider other possible beliefs :
▪ Some politically active teachers were accused of trying to indoctrinate their students.
indoctrinate somebody into doing something
▪ Citizens were indoctrinated into believing that their leader was the source of all wisdom and goodness.
indoctrination /ɪnˌdɒktrɪˈneɪʃ ə n, ɪnˌdɒktrəˈneɪʃ ə nǁɪnˌdɑːk-/ [uncountable noun]
▪ She believes that all religious teaching in schools is indoctrination.
4. the work of a teacher
▷ teaching /ˈtiːtʃɪŋ/ [uncountable noun]
the work that a teacher does, or the job of being a teacher :
▪ Andrea took some time off from teaching when her children were small.
go into teaching
become a teacher
▪ What made you go into teaching?
leave teaching
▪ He left teaching and took a job as a truck driver.
▷ training /ˈtreɪnɪŋ/ [uncountable noun]
when someone is taught the skills that they need for a job :
have training
▪ Have you had any medical training?
give somebody training
▪ All new staff should be given computer training.
training course
▪ We all had to go on a special training course to learn new sales techniques.
▷ education /ˌedjʊˈkeɪʃ ə nǁˌedʒə-/ [uncountable noun]
the work of teaching people in schools, colleges, universities etc :
▪ The new policies have been welcomed by people working in education.
▪ Jobs in education are not usually highly paid.
▪ the Labour Party’s spokeswoman on education
▷ instruction /ɪnˈstrʌkʃ ə n/ [uncountable noun]
teaching in a particular skill or subject :
▪ Young drivers come to us for instruction in safe and skilful driving.
▪ Half an hour’s instruction from an experienced horse-rider is much better than anything you can learn from a book.
under instruction
being taught
▪ The trainees work at their machines under instruction from a supervisor.
▷ tuition /tjuːˈɪʃ ə nǁtuː-/ [uncountable noun]
teaching given privately to one person or a small group in a particular subject :
▪ Nina’s parents paid for extra tuition to help her with her maths.
▪ Computerworld offers personal tuition on the latest equipment.
5. someone who teaches
▷ teacher /ˈtiːtʃəʳ/ [countable noun]
someone who teaches, especially someone whose job is to teach children in a school :
▪ She’s a teacher in the high school.
▪ I remember having some pretty awful teachers when I was at school.
English/science/chemistry etc teacher
▪ The school doesn’t have enough French teachers.
teacher of
▪ a conference for teachers of English
▷ tutor /ˈtjuːtəʳǁˈtuː-/ [countable noun]
someone who gives lessons to just one student or a small group of students :
▪ When she was ill she studied at home with a private tutor.
▪ They hired a private tutor to help Carlos with his English.
▷ instructor /ɪnˈstrʌktəʳ/ [countable noun]
someone who teaches a sport or a practical skill :
swimming/driving/riding etc instructor
▪ I managed to find a very good driving instructor.
▪ a ski instructor
▷ coach /kəʊtʃ/ [countable noun]
someone who trains a person or a team in a sport, and helps them to improve their skills :
basketball/football/tennis etc coach
▪ We got a professional football coach to come and help us train the team.
▷ trainer /ˈtreɪnəʳ/ [countable noun]
someone who trains people in the skills they need to do a job :
▪ Many companies now pay outside trainers to come in and teach management skills to their staff.
▪ I work as a teacher trainer.
▷ professor /prəˈfesəʳ/ [countable noun]
a university teacher - used in Britain to mean a teacher of the highest rank, and in the US to mean any university teacher who has a higher degree such as a PhD :
▪ The meeting will be chaired by Professor Andrew Jones.
▪ Archie’s father is a retired physics professor.
professor of
▪ She’s a professor of history at Oxford University.
▷ lecturer /ˈlektʃ ə rəʳ/ [countable noun]
someone who teaches at a university or college :
▪ Watson is now a lecturer at the University of Bradford.
▪ a chemistry lecturer
lecturer in
▪ a lecturer in economics
▷ academic /ˌækəˈdemɪk/ [countable noun]
someone who works, studies, and teaches in a university, and has a lot of knowledge about a particular subject :
▪ Academics can usually get time off teaching to do their own research.
▷ educator /ˈedjʊkeɪtəʳǁˈedʒə-/ [countable noun] formal
someone who teaches in a school, college, or university :
▪ Most educators agree that intimidating children is not the best way to encourage them to learn.
▪ Professor Taylor is generally recognized as one of the state’s most respected educators.
▷ faculty /ˈfæk ə lti/ [countable noun usually singular] American
all the teachers in a college or university :
▪ Norman White has been on the faculty at UCLA for over thirty years.
▪ Nearly half the faculty turned out to show their support.
6. designed or intended to teach something
▷ educational /ˌedjʊˈkeɪʃ ə nəl◂ǁˌedʒə-/ [adjective]
educational books, games, television programmes etc are designed to help you to learn something :
▪ a shop selling educational toys for 7- to 11-year-olds
▪ a leading publisher of educational books and software
▷ instructive /ɪnˈstrʌktɪv/ [adjective]
providing a lot of useful information, explanations, and knowledge about something :
▪ Lectures must be interesting as well as instructive.
▪ The books are designed to be both entertaining and instructive.
▷ learning /ˈlɜːʳnɪŋ/ [adjective only before noun]
use this about books, methods, activities etc that are intended to teach people something :
▪ They stock a wide variety of learning materials for younger students.
▪ How can we make the most of the Internet as a learning tool?