Both words are about knowledge, but knowledge moves in different directions.
- Teach means to give knowledge or a skill.
- Learn means to get knowledge or a skill.
Teach: giving knowledge
The person who knows something shares it. Use teach for the giver.
My grandpa teaches me chess.
Ms Lee teaches maths on Mondays.
Who taught you to ride a bike?
I will teach my dog to shake hands.
Common patterns:
- teach + person + thing: She taught me French.
- teach + person + to + verb: He taught me to swim.
- teach + a subject: My aunt teaches music.
Learn: getting knowledge
The person who gets the knowledge uses learn. You can learn from a teacher, a book, a video, or by trying.
I learned to ride a bike last summer.
We are learning about volcanoes at school.
My little brother learns new words every day.
The robot learned to open the fridge. Oh no.
Common patterns:
- learn + thing: I'm learning English.
- learn + to + verb: She learned to swim.
- learn + about + topic: We learned about space.
Easy way to tell them apart
Draw an arrow. The knowledge moves from the one who knows to the one who doesn't yet.
Teacher → teaches → student
Student ← learns ← teacher
Ask: am I giving it, or getting it?
💡 The OddLingo Trick
T is for Teacher: it gives.
If you are the one who gets the knowledge, you are the learner.
⚠️ Common mistakes
You can't "learn" another person. Use teach for the giver.
❌ My brother learned me to swim.
✅ My brother taught me to swim.
Don't say teach for yourself.
❌ I am teaching English at school. (if you are a student)
✅ I am learning English at school.
The past of teach is taught.
❌ She teached me.
✅ She taught me.
Good to know
- The past of learn can be learned or learnt. Learnt is more common in British English.
- A person can do both. A teacher teaches a class and also learns from the students.
💬 In a Conversation
Mia: Who taught you to ride a bike?
Sam: Grandpa taught me.
Mia: And what did you learn?
Sam: Mostly how to fall off.
Mia: That is also learning.