different between attain vs learn

English

Etymology

From Anglo-Norman ataindre, from Old French, from Latin atting?.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??te?n/
• Rhymes: -e?n

Verb

attain (third-person singular simple present attains, present participle attaining, simple past and past participle attained)

1. (transitive) To gain (an object or desired result).

   Synonyms: accomplish, achieve, get

   To attain such a high level of proficiency requires hours of practice each day.

   • c. 1595, William Shakespeare, Richard II, Act II, Scene 3,^[1]

     Lord Ross. Your presence makes us rich, most noble lord.

     Lord Willoughby. And far surmounts our labour to attain it.

   • 1848, William Makepeace Thackeray, Vanity Fair, London: Bradbury and Evans, Chapter 63, p. 572,^[2]

     […] he will stick at no falsehood, or hesitate at no crime, to attain his ends.

   • 1885, W. S. Gilbert, The Mikado, London: Chappell & Co., Act I, p. 6,^[3]

     […] that’s the highest rank a citizen can attain!

   • 1937, George Orwell, The Road to Wigan Pier, New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1958, Part 1, Chapter 5, p. 82,^[4]

     […] solitude is never easy to attain in a working-class home

   • 2007, Mohsin Hamid, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, Orlando: Harcourt, Chapter 11, p. 157,^[5]

     Where else could I […] hope to attain such an impressive income?

2. (transitive) To reach or come to, by progression or motion; to arrive at (a place, time, state, etc.).
   • c. 1599, William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar, Act V, Scene 5,^[6]

     […] my bones would rest,

     That have but labour’d to attain this hour.

   • 1667, John Milton, Paradise Lost, Book 10, line 1026,^[7]

     Canaan he now attains,

   • 1792, Mary Wollstonecraft, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, London: J. Johnson, Part 1, Chapter 4, p. 150,^[8]

     It has also been asserted, by some naturalists, that men do not attain their full growth and strength till thirty; but that women arrive at maturity by twenty.

   • 1818, Mary Shelley, Frankenstein, London: Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor, & Jones, Volume 1, Letter 3,^[9]

     the southern gales […] blow us speedily towards those shores which I so ardently desire to attain

3. (intransitive) To come or arrive, by motion, growth, bodily exertion, or efforts toward a place, object, state, etc.

   Synonyms: get, reach

   • 1611, King James Version of the Bible, Psalm 139.6,^[10]

     Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I can not attain unto it.

   • 1611, King James Version of the Bible, Acts 27.12,^[11]

     if by any means they might attain to Phenice

   • 1782, William Cowper, letter to Joseph Hill dated 11 November, 1782, in Private Correspondence of William Cowper, London: Henry Colburn, 1824, Volume 1, p. 222,^[12]

     You may not, perhaps, live to see your trees attain to the dignity of timber—I, nevertheless, approve of your planting, and the disinterested spirit that prompts you to it.

   • 1810, Walter Scott, The Lady of the Lake, Edinburgh: John Ballantyne, Canto 1, stanza 7, p. 10,^[13]

     For, scarce a spear’s length from his haunch,

     Vindictive toiled the blood-hounds staunch;

     Nor nearer might the dogs attain,

     Nor farther might the quarry strain.

   • 1874, John Richard Green, A Short History of the English People, London: Macmillan, Chapter 2, Section 6, p. 90,^[14]

     Few boroughs had as yet attained to power such as this,

4. (transitive, obsolete) To get at the knowledge of.

   Synonym: ascertain

   • 1655, Thomas Fuller, The Church-History of Britain, London: John Williams, Century 13, section 2, p. ,^[15]

     […] Master Camden, sometimes acknowledgeth, sometimes denieth him for an English Earle. Not that I accuse him as inconstant to himself, but suspect my self not well attaining his meaning therein.

5. (transitive, obsolete) To reach in excellence or degree.

   Synonym: equal

   • 1625, Francis Bacon, Essays, “Of Innovations,” p. 139,^[16]

     Yet notwithstanding as Those that first bring Honour into their Family, are commonly more worthy, then most that succeed: So the first President (if it be good) is seldome attained by Imitation.

6. (transitive, obsolete) To reach a person after being behind them.

   Synonyms: catch up with, overtake

   • 1622, Francis Bacon, History of the Reign of King Henry VII, London, 1629, p. 174,^[17]

     The Earle finding […] the enemie retired, pursued with all celeritie into Scotland; hoping to haue ouer-taken the Scottish King, and to haue giuen him Battaile; But not attaining him in time, sate downe before the Castle of Aton […] which in a small time hee tooke.

Derived terms

• attainable

Related terms

• attainder
• attainment
• attaint
• attainture

Translations

Anagrams

• Anitta

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: lûn, IPA^(key): /l??n/
• (General American) enPR: lûrn, IPA^(key): /l?n/
• Rhymes: -??(?)n

Etymology 1

From Middle English lernen, from Old English leornian (“to acquire knowledge”), from Proto-Germanic *liznan?. Cognate with German lernen (“to learn”).

Verb

learn (third-person singular simple present learns, present participle learning, simple past and past participle learned or (chiefly UK) learnt)

1. To acquire, or attempt to acquire knowledge or an ability to do something.
   • 2016, VOA Learning English (public domain)

     Every day I learn more about this great city.

2. To attend a course or other educational activity.
   • 1719, Daniel Defoe, Robinson Crusoe

     For, as he took delight to introduce me, I took delight to learn.

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

4. To study.

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

Conjugation

Usage notes

• See other, dated and regional, sense of learn below.

Synonyms

• study

Antonyms

• forget
• teach

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

learn (plural learns)

1. The act of learning something

Etymology 2

Possibly related to Middle English leren, from Old English l?ran (“to teach, instruct, indoctrinate”), from Proto-West Germanic *lai?ijan, from Proto-Germanic *laizijan? (“to teach”), from *laiz? (“lore, teaching", literally, "track, trace”), from Proto-Indo-European *leys- (“to track, furrow”).

Cognate with Scots lere, leir, Saterland Frisian leere, West Frisian leare, Dutch leren, German lehren, Swedish lära. See also lear, lore. But normally the Middle English word would give lere, not learn.

Verb

learn (third-person singular simple present learns, present participle learning, simple past and past participle learned or learnt)

1. (now only in non-standard speech and dialects) To teach.

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

   • 1599, William Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing, Act 4 Scene 1

     Sweet prince, you learn me noble thankfulness.

   • circa 1611, William Shakespeare, Cymbeline, Act I Scene 5:

     Have I not been / Thy pupil long? Hast thou not learn’d me how / To make perfumes?

   • 1993, The Simpsons, (18 Feb. 1993) Lisa's thoughts:

     That'll learn him to bust my tomater.

Usage notes

Now often considered non-standard.

Derived terms

• learned

Related terms

• larn
• lore

References

• learn in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• learn in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913..
• Family Word Finder, Readers Digest Association Inc. NY 1975

Anagrams

• Laren, Larne, laner, neral, renal

Bavarian

Alternative forms

• learnan (Timau)

Etymology

From Old High German lern?n, lirn?n, from Proto-Germanic *liznan?. Compare German lernen, English learn, Dutch leren.

Verb

learn

1. (Sappada, Sauris) to learn

References

• “learn” in Patuzzi, Umberto, ed., (2013) Ünsarne Börtar [Our Words], Luserna, Italy: Comitato unitario delle isole linguistiche storiche germaniche in Italia / Einheitskomitee der historischen deutschen Sprachinseln in Italien

Scots

Etymology

From Old English leornian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /l?rn/

Verb

learn (third-person singular present learns, present participle learnin, past learnt, past participle learnt)

1. To learn.
2. To teach.