Educate: Leading Out, or Bringing Up?
To educate is to teach systematically. Two Latin verbs stand behind it, and the argument over which one is the real ancestor says a lot about how people see teaching.
To educate is to teach someone over time, not to tell them one thing once. Speeches often claim the word means to lead out, drawing knowledge out of the learner. The Latin is less tidy: *educare*, to bring up or rear, is the direct ancestor, and it is related to *educere*, to lead out. Both ideas are genuinely in the family.
- To teach, especially formally and over time. *She was educated in Manchester.*
- To inform the public about something. *A campaign to educate drivers.*
- To train a taste or a habit. *An educated palate.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb | educate | Educate the public. |
| Past | educated | Educated at home. |
| Noun | education | Higher education. |
| Adjective | educational | Educational software. |
| Noun | educator | A respected educator. |
How it is used in a sentence
- He was educated in France and works in Berlin.The passive is the usual way to say where someone went to school.
- The charity works to educate people about the risks.Educate about is the standard phrasing for public campaigns.
- That is an educated guess, not a fact.Educated guess means informed, not certain.
Educate, teach, train and instruct
- Educate — develop knowledge and judgement over years
- Teach — pass on a specific subject or skill
- Train — build a practical skill by repetition
- Instruct — tell someone how to do something, often once
- Tutor — teach one person or a few, closely
From Latin *educare*, to bring up or rear, itself connected to *educere*, to lead out, from *ex* (out) and *ducere* (to lead) — the same *ducere* behind *duke*, *conduct* and *produce*. English took the word in the fifteenth century, at first meaning to rear a child.
Does educate really mean to lead out?
Partly. The immediate source means to rear or bring up, but it belongs to the same family as the verb meaning to lead out, so the popular explanation is half right.
Educate or teach?
You teach a subject and educate a person. Teaching is what happens in a lesson; education is what is left years later.