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Dictionary / learn

learn

/lɜːn/ (Received-Pronunciation)/lɝn/ (General-American)/lɑː(ɹ)n/ (dialectal)
  • verb
  • noun
  • from Old English

To acquire, or attempt to acquire knowledge or an ability to do something.

▶ Play the mastery game

1 All current definitions

Every sense of “learn” in current use, as recorded by Wiktionary. Older and obsolete senses are kept separately.

verb

  1. To acquire, or attempt to acquire knowledge or an ability to do something.

    It's time Dad learned (how) to change the oil in the car.

  2. To attend a course or other educational activity.

    For, as he took delight to introduce me, I took delight to learn.1719 May 6 (Gregorian calendar), [Daniel Defoe], The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, […], London: […] W[illiam] Taylor […], →OCLC:

  3. To gain knowledge from a bad experience so as to improve.

    learn from one's mistakes

  4. To study.

    I learn medicine.

  5. To come to know; to become informed of; to find out.

    He just learned that he will be sacked.

  6. To teach.

    Give him a clip round the ear. That'll learn him!

Wiktionary: “learn” (via kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0

noun

  1. The act of learning something.

    I did a quick learn of the place by watching the people shuffle in. There was a healthy mix of beautiful and freaky people, who shared a few common denominators[…]2003, Gregory A. Raymer, The Woodie Chronicles: My Journey Through America on the road t recovery in a 1949 Woodie Wagon:

Wiktionary: “learn” (via kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0
Cross-check: WordNet senses (6)
  1. verbgain knowledge or skills — also: larn, acquire
  2. verbget to know or become aware of, usually accidentally — also: hear, get word, get wind, pick up, find out
  3. verbcommit to memory; learn by heart — also: memorize, memorise, con
  4. verbbe a student of a certain subject — also: study, read, take
  5. verbimpart skills or knowledge to — also: teach, instruct
  6. verbfind out, learn, or determine with certainty, usually by making an inquiry or other effort — also: determine, check, find out, see, ascertain
Princeton WordNet 3.0 — WordNet License

Synonyms: study

Antonyms: forget, teach

Wiktionary: “learn” (via kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0

2 History of the word

The etymology, the path the word travelled, and the words built from it.

The word’s journey, newest to oldest:

  1. English (today)learn
  2. Middle Englishlernen “to learn", also, "to teach"”
  3. Old Englishleornian “to learn", rarely also, "to teach”
  4. Proto-West Germanic*liʀnōn
  5. Proto-Germanic*lizaną
  6. Proto-Indo-European* (le-)
  7. Proto-Indo-Europeanthe

From Middle English lernen (“to learn", also, "to teach"”), from Old English leornian (“to learn", rarely also, "to teach”), from Proto-West Germanic *liʀnōn, from Proto-Germanic *lizaną, from Proto-Indo-European *(le-)lóys-e, stative from the root *leys- (“track, furrow, trace, trail”).

The spelling with ⟨ea⟩ is of Early Modern English origin and reflects a lengthening of /ɛ~e/ to /eː/ before /rn/ in Late Old English or Early Middle English, then later lowering to /ɛː/; the modern pronunciation reflects still later reshortening. The dialect form with /ɑː/ reflects the Middle English pronunciation which either retained the short /ɛ/ or reshortened it earlier, enabling the a development to /a/ before /r/ which yielded modern /ɑː/.

Cognate with Old Frisian lernia, lerna (“to learn”), Middle Low German lernen (“to learn", also, "to teach”), Middle Dutch leernen (“to learn", also, "to teach”) (whence Dutch lernen (“to study scripture”)), German lernen (“to learn”). See also lore and lear.

Wiktionary: “learn” (via kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0

Derivatives — words built from “learn”

belearnforelearnlearnabilitylearnablelearnedlearnerlearnfarelearnificationlearninglearnlesslearnlinglearnsetlearnylunch-and-learnmislearnmust-learnoutlearnoverlearnrelearnunlearn

Phrases & compounds

learn Arabiclearn Chineselearn from experiencelearn one's lessonlearn one's placelearn the hard waylearn the ropeslearn to walk before one can runlessons learnedlive and learnthat'll learn someonewho keeps company with the wolf will learn to howlyou are never too old to learnyou learn something new every dayyou're never too old to learn

Related terms

learlore
Wiktionary: “learn” (via kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0

Want to go deeper? See also “learn” on Etymonline ↗

3 Original language

Where “learn” came from before it was English.

Native English word, from
Old English
Old English leornian “to learn", rarely also, "to teach”
Deepest root (reconstructed)
Proto-Indo-European
Proto-Indo-European the
Wiktionary: “learn” (via kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0

4 Original meaning

What the word meant at the oldest point the record reaches.

Old English
“to learn", rarely also, "to teach”
Old English leornian
Wiktionary: “learn” (via kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0

Historical meaning — Webster’s 1913

A historical record, labelled as such: some of these senses are dated or have since shifted.

learn v. t. [OE. lernen, leornen, AS. leornian; akin to OS. lin, for lirn, OHG. lirn, lern, G. lernen, fr. the root of AS. l to teach, OS. l, OHG. l, G. lehren, Goth. laisjan, also Goth lais I know, leis acquainted (in comp.); all prob. from a root meaning, to go, go over, and hence, to learn; cf. AS. leoran to go. Cf. Last a mold of the foot, lore.]

  1. To gain knowledge or information of; to ascertain by inquiry, study, or investigation; to receive instruction concerning; to fix in the mind; to acquire understanding of, or skill; as, to learn the way; to learn a lesson; to learn dancing; to learn to skate; to learn the violin; to learn the truth about something.
  2. To communicate knowledge to; to teach.

learn v. i.

  1. To acquire knowledge or skill; to make progress in acquiring knowledge or skill; to receive information or instruction; as, this child learns quickly.
Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), public domain, via GCIDE

5 Use it with confidence

Model sentences from the sources, matched to the meaning they show. Read each one aloud, then make your own in the game.

verbMeaning: To acquire, or attempt to acquire knowledge or an ability to do something.

It's time Dad learned (how) to change the oil in the car.

In my latest job, I've learnt to keep my mouth shut more than in the last one.

verbMeaning: To attend a course or other educational activity.

For, as he took delight to introduce me, I took delight to learn.1719 May 6 (Gregorian calendar), [Daniel Defoe], The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, […], London: […] W[illiam] Taylor […], →OCLC:

verbMeaning: To gain knowledge from a bad experience so as to improve.

learn from one's mistakes

verbMeaning: To study.

I learn medicine.

They learn psychology.

verbMeaning: To come to know; to become informed of; to find out.

He just learned that he will be sacked.

verbMeaning: To teach.

Give him a clip round the ear. That'll learn him!

Sweete Prince, you learne me noble thankfulnes: […]1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, Much Adoe about Nothing. […], quarto edition, London: […] V[alentine] S[immes] for Andrew Wise, and William Aspley, published 1600, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene i], signature

verbMeaning: gain knowledge or skills

She learned dancing from her sister

I learned Sanskrit

verbMeaning: get to know or become aware of, usually accidentally

I learned that she has two grown-up children

Princeton WordNet 3.0 — WordNet License
Wiktionary: “learn” (via kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0

Three steps to owning it

  1. Pick one meaning above and read its model sentence out loud.
  2. Say who or what the word is about in your own life, then build a sentence around that.
  3. Check it against the definition: would a careful reader understand exactly that meaning?

6 The mastery game

Play it here, or print it and do it with pen and paper. At the end you will know the meanings, history, origin and original meaning — and you will have used the word yourself.

Step 1 of 10

Say it, then spell it

learn

/lɜːn/

Say the word out loud three times, slowly. Notice the stressed syllable. When you are ready, hide it and spell it from memory.

Activate Words · Word-mastery worksheet · Name: ______________________ Date: __________

learn

/lɜːn/ · verb, noun

Step 1 — Say it and write it

Say “learn” out loud three times. Then cover the word and write it three times from memory.

Step 2 — Know every meaning

Read each definition. Then write it again in your own words.

1. (verb) To acquire, or attempt to acquire knowledge or an ability to do something.
2. (verb) To attend a course or other educational activity.
3. (verb) To gain knowledge from a bad experience so as to improve.
4. (verb) To study.
5. (verb) To come to know; to become informed of; to find out.

Step 3 — Which meaning is it?

“It's time Dad learned (how) to change the oil in the car.”

A. To come to know; to become informed of; to find out.
B. To acquire, or attempt to acquire knowledge or an ability to do something.
C. To gain knowledge from a bad experience so as to improve.

Circle the meaning used.

“learn from one's mistakes”

A. To teach.
B. To gain knowledge from a bad experience so as to improve.
C. The act of learning something.

Circle the meaning used.

“I learn medicine.”

A. The act of learning something.
B. To study.
C. To come to know; to become informed of; to find out.

Circle the meaning used.

Step 4 — History and origin

Which language did “learn” come into English from?   A. Anglo-Norman  B. Latin  C. New Latin  D. Old English

Write the word’s journey back in time (each language and form):

Write three words built from “learn” and what each means:

Step 5 — Original meaning

The earliest traceable form is Old English leornian. What did it mean?

How does that original meaning connect to the meanings today?

Step 6 — Use it yourself

Write a sentence using “learn” to mean: To acquire, or attempt to acquire knowledge or an ability to do something.
Write a sentence using “learn” to mean: To attend a course or other educational activity.
Write a sentence using “learn” to mean: To gain knowledge from a bad experience so as to improve.

☐ I can explain its meanings   ☐ I know its history   ☐ I know its original language   ☐ I know its original meaning   ☐ I can use it confidently

Answer key — learn

Which meaning, sentence 1: B. To acquire, or attempt to acquire knowledge or an ability to do something.

Which meaning, sentence 2: B. To gain knowledge from a bad experience so as to improve.

Which meaning, sentence 3: B. To study.

Origin: D. Old English (Old English leornian)

Journey: English learn ← Middle English lernen ← Old English leornian ← Proto-West Germanic *liʀnōn ← Proto-Germanic *lizaną ← Proto-Indo-European * ← Proto-Indo-European the

Some derivatives: belearn, forelearn, learnability, learnable, learned, learner, learnfare, learnification

Original meaning: Old English leornian — “to learn", rarely also, "to teach”

Etymology: From Middle English lernen (“to learn", also, "to teach"”), from Old English leornian (“to learn", rarely also, "to teach”), from Proto-West Germanic *liʀnōn, from Proto-Germanic *lizaną, from Proto-Indo-European *(le-)lóys-e, stative from the root *leys- (“track, furrow, trace, trail”).

Sources: Wiktionary “learn” (https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/learn#English), CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org; Princeton WordNet 3.0; Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913, public domain) via GCIDE. Worksheet from https://activatewords.com/w/learn