educate

play

verb ed·u·cate \ˈe-jə-ˌkāt\

Definition of educate

educated

;

educating

transitive verb
1a : to provide schooling for chose to educate their children at homeb : to train by formal instruction and supervised practice especially in a skill, trade, or profession
2a : to develop mentally, morally, or aesthetically especially by instructionb : to provide with information : inform educating themselves about changes in the industry
3 : to persuade or condition to feel, believe, or act in a desired way educate the public to support our position
intransitive verb
: to educate a person or thing

See educate defined for English-language learners

See educate defined for kids

Examples of educate in a Sentence

Parents trust schools to educate their children.
The job of our public schools is to educate.

Recent Examples of educate from the Web

Educating women can really help in this situation, Sadler said.

— paul sisson, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Half of all cancer deaths are avoidable. Follow these key prevention steps.", 2 June 2017
The 299-seat performance space in the Black Ensemble Cultural Center, 4450 N. Clark St., annually hosts a five-play season with programming created to be entertaining, educating and uplifting.

— philip potempa, Post-Tribune, "Josephine Baker's life, career and cautions recalled on stage", 30 May 2017
Some of those monuments were erected by the United Daughters of the Confederacy, which has programs to educate children on its version of Southern history.

— jay reeves, The Seattle Times, "Old South monument backers embrace “Confederate Catechism”", 29 May 2017
On Osama bin Laden's orders, aides had kept him in a separate hideout with the intention of sending him to Qatar to be educated, according to U.S. and Pakistani counterterrorism officials.

— joby warrick and souad mekhennet, chicagotribune.com, "Bin Laden’s son steps into father’s shoes as al-Qaeda attempts a comeback", 28 May 2017
On Osama bin Laden’s orders, aides had kept him in a separate hideout with the intention of sending him to Qatar to be educated, according to U.S. and Pakistani counterterrorism officials.

— joby warrick, Washington Post, "Bin Laden’s son steps into father’s shoes as al-Qaeda attempts a comeback", 27 May 2017
Along with several others, the Alexanders, of Madison, were instrumental in the founding of Huntsville's Greengate School, a learning institution dedicated to educating and supporting dyslexic students.

— ashley remkus, AL.com, "Woman indicted in hit-and-run crash that killed advocate for dyslexic Alabama children", 27 May 2017
So on one hand, owners of mezcal bars are spreading the gospel, trying to educate the drinker about the spirit.

— robert simonson, New York Times, "Here, Try Some Mezcal. But Not Too Much.", 26 May 2017
Brand USA competes in the global marketplace to attract those travelers and educate them on U. S. travel policies.

— justin bachman, Bloomberg.com, "Trump Turns His Back on International Tourists", 25 May 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'educate'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of educate

Middle English, to rear, from Latin educatus, past participle of educare to rear, educate, from educere to lead forth — more at educe

NEW!

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

Synonym Discussion of educate

teach, instruct, educate, train, discipline, school mean to cause to acquire knowledge or skill. teach applies to any manner of imparting information or skill so that others may learn. taught us a lot about our planet instruct suggests methodical or formal teaching. instructs raw recruits in military drill educate implies development of the mind. more things than formal schooling serve to educate a person train stresses instruction and drill with a specific end in view. trained foreign pilots to operate the new aircraft discipline implies training in habits of order and precision. a disciplined mind school implies training or disciplining especially in what is hard to master. schooled the horse in five gaits

EDUCATE Defined for English Language Learners

educate

play

verb

Definition of educate for English Language Learners

: to teach (someone) especially in a school, college, or university
: to give (someone) information about something : to train (someone) to do something

EDUCATE Defined for Kids

educate

play

verb ed·u·cate \ˈe-jə-ˌkāt\

Definition of educate for Students

educated

;

educating

1 : to provide schooling for Her parents are educating her at home.
2 : to develop the mind and morals of especially by formal instruction : teach Teachers work hard to educate their students.
3 : to provide with necessary information The public should be educated about how to save energy.

educator

\ˈe-jə-ˌkā-tər\ noun

Word Root of educate

The Latin word ducere, meaning “to lead,” and its form ductus give us the roots duc and duct. Words from the Latin ducere have something to do with leading. A duct is a tube that leads from one place or organ to another. To educate, or teach, is to lead to knowledge. To induce is to lead into a particular state.