From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishteachteach /tiːtʃ/ ●●● S1 W2 verb (past tense and past participle taught /tɔːt $ tɒːt/) 1 school/college etc [intransitive, transitive]TEACH to give lessons in a school, college, or university, or to help someone learn about something by giving them information → learnteach at Neil teaches at the Guildhall School of Music in London.teach (somebody) English/mathematics/history etc He taught geography at the local secondary school.teach somebody (something) about something We were never taught anything about other religions.teach something to somebody I’m teaching English to Italian students.teach school/college etc American English (=teach in a school etc)2 show somebody how [transitive]TEACH to show someone how to do somethingteach somebody (how) to do something My father taught me to swim. different methods of teaching children how to readteach somebody something Can you teach me one of your card tricks?3 change somebody’s ideas [transitive]TEACH to show or tell someone how they should behave or what they should thinkteach somebody to do something When I was young, we were taught to treat older people with respect.teach somebody something No one ever taught him the difference between right and wrong.teach somebody that He taught me that the easy option isn’t always the best one.4 experience shows something [transitive]SHOW/BE A SIGN OF if an experience or situation teaches you something, it helps you to understand something about lifeteach somebody to do something Experience has taught me to avoid certain areas of the city.teach somebody that It’s certainly taught me that work and money aren’t the most important things in life.5 → that’ll teach you (to do something)6 → teach somebody a lesson7 → you can’t teach an old dog new tricks8 → teach your grandmother (to suck eggs)THESAURUSteach to give lessons in a school, college, or universityI taught for a year in France.He teaches physics at York University.lecture to teach in a college or university by giving talks to groups of students on a subjectHe lectures in engineering at a local college.instruct formal to teach someone how to do something, especially a particular practical skillHe was instructing them how to use the computer system.Staff are instructed in how to respond in the event of a fire.tutor to teach one student or a small groupI found work tutoring Mexican students in English.coach especially British English to give private lessons, especially so that someone can pass an important testHe coaches students for their university entrance exams.train to teach a person or group of people in the particular skills or knowledge they need to do a jobIt will take at least a month to train the new assistant.educate to teach someone over a long period, usually at school or universityHe was educated in England.Her parents want to educate her at home.show somebody the ropes informal to show someone how to do a job or task that they have just started doingMiss McGinley will show you the ropes and answer any questions you may have. → See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
teach• I teach 18- to 21-year olds.• It took us several hours to teach all the dance moves to the girls.• My brief was to teach art and history of art to all age groups.• Léonie kept her hands outside the covers as she had been taught by the nuns at her primary school.• She teaches English to Italian students.• The teaching facilities for our Drama Department needed reconfiguring and redecorating.• I taught for a year in France.• She got a job teaching German at a local school.• Wyatt hugged her; she had taught him how to swim two summers ago.• Joe's mother taught him that he could do anything, if only he tried hard enough.• Russell has been teaching in Japan for almost ten years.• During his teens, his father was building a law practice in Brooklyn and teaching law part-time.• Teaching literature to the fifth grade is no joke!• Grandpa taught me a new card trick.• There was never a suggestion that my father alone could not love me, teach me, discipline me.• My mother taught me how to cook.• I've always wanted to learn to ski - could you teach me?• Public schools should not teach metaphysics without clearly identifying them as such.• My Dad taught school in New York.• I prefer teaching the older children.• Miss Himes teaches the youngest class, the four and five- year-olds.• Parents need to teach their children the difference between right and wrong.• Nobody has to sleep; you're taught to sleep when you're a kid.• When I was young, children were taught to treat older people with respect.• You must remember Mr Hughes - he used to teach us history.• Who taught you to drive?teach school/college etc• Some open restaurants or teach school.• Thoreau first tried to make a career of teaching school and then wrote essays, which almost no one bought.• Because he had taught school before becoming a Fed he had some experience of kids.• Her education qualified her to teach school, but not for the choice assignments.• Brownson went west to Detroit to teach school, but the old debates about Calvinism followed him even there to the frontier.• It is being asked to compensate for the failures of the education system by teaching school children art and history.• Epstein taught college courses concurrently with his work at the two newspapers.• He taught school in his native Gary, Ind., before coming to the Washington area in 1972.teach somebody something• Camp teaches kids a lot about nature.• Can you teach me one of your card tricks?• No one ever taught him the difference between right and wrong.teach somebody to do something• Playing sports has taught me never to give up.• Parents need to teach their children to share.Origin teach Old English tæcan “to show, teach” 