different between counsel vs learn

English

Etymology

From Middle English counseil, conseil, from Old French conseil, from Latin c?nsilium; akin to c?nsul? (“take counsel, consult”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: koun?-s?l, IPA^(key): /?ka?n.s?l/
• Homophone: council

Noun

counsel (countable and uncountable, plural counsels)

1. The exchange of opinions and advice especially in legal issues; consultation.
2. Exercise of judgment; prudence.
   • 1594, Richard Hooker, Of the Lawes of Ecclesiastical Politie

     They all confess, therefore, in the working of that first cause, that counsel is used.

3. Advice; guidance.
   • It was ill counsel had misled the girl.

4. Deliberate purpose; design; intent; scheme; plan.
5. (obsolete) A secret opinion or purpose; a private matter.

   • thilke lord […] to whom no counsel may be hid

6. A lawyer, as in Queen's Counsel (QC).

Usage notes

In the sense 'lawyer', the plural is usually unchanged counsel.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:advice

Translations

Verb

counsel (third-person singular simple present counsels, present participle counselling or counseling, simple past and past participle counselled or counseled)

1. (transitive) To give advice, especially professional advice, to (somebody).

   The lawyer counselled his client to remain silent.

   Psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and other mental health professionals counsel clients.

2. (transitive) To recommend (a course of action).

   I would counsel prudence in this matter.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:advise

Translations

Derived terms

Related terms

See also

• council

Anagrams

• conules, leucons, unclose

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.