Teaching in Different Languages
Discover 'Teaching' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
Teaching is an essential profession that has been a cornerstone of human societies for thousands of years. It is the process of imparting knowledge, skills, and values to others, often with the goal of helping them to develop and grow. Teaching is a culturally important activity that is valued around the world, and it is often seen as a key factor in the success and well-being of individuals and communities.
For those who are interested in language and culture, learning the translations of teaching in different languages can be a fascinating and rewarding pursuit. Not only does it provide insight into the ways that different cultures think about and approach education, but it can also be a practical skill for those who work in international or multicultural settings.
Here are a few examples of how teaching is translated in different languages:
- Spanish: enseñanza
- French: enseignement
- German: Unterricht
- Mandarin: 教学 (jiào xué)
- Japanese: 教育 (kyōiku)
- Russian: обучение (obuchenie)
Teaching
Teaching in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | onderrig | ||
| The word "onderrig" in Afrikaans comes from the Dutch word "onderrichting", which means "instruction" or "guidance". | |||
| Amharic | ማስተማር | ||
| The word 'ማስተማር' ('teaching') can also refer to 'making someone understand' or 'explaining something clearly'. | |||
| Hausa | koyarwa | ||
| In Hausa, the word "koyarwa" derives from the verb "koya," meaning "to teach" or "to show," and also signifies the act of imparting knowledge or skills. | |||
| Igbo | izi ihe | ||
| "Izi ihe" also means "to show" or "to demonstrate". | |||
| Malagasy | fampianarana | ||
| Derived from the root "fianatra" meaning "to learn" and the suffix "-ana" indicating an action or process. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | kuphunzitsa | ||
| The word "kuphunzitsa" has an alternate meaning in Nyanja: "to show someone how to do something" | |||
| Shona | kudzidzisa | ||
| In addition to meaning "teaching," "kudzidzisa" can also refer to the act of guiding or leading someone. | |||
| Somali | waxbarid | ||
| The term "waxbarid" originated from the Somali verb "bar" which means "to teach". Variant forms of the word include "waxbarasho" (noun) and "waxbar" (adjective). | |||
| Sesotho | ho ruta | ||
| “Ho ruta” means education in its widest sense, from the informal home environment to formal schooling and continuing education later in life. | |||
| Swahili | kufundisha | ||
| The word 'kufundisha' comes from the root word 'funda', meaning 'to learn'. | |||
| Xhosa | ukufundisa | ||
| "Ukufundisa" is cognate to "funda," which means "to learn." It signifies the reciprocal nature of teaching and learning. | |||
| Yoruba | ẹkọ | ||
| Ẹkọ can also mean 'education' or 'training' in different contexts. | |||
| Zulu | ukufundisa | ||
| Uku-fundisa derives from ukú-funda, a verb meaning "to learn" in Zulu. | |||
| Bambara | kalan kɛli | ||
| Ewe | nufiafia | ||
| Kinyarwanda | kwigisha | ||
| Lingala | koteya | ||
| Luganda | okusomesa | ||
| Sepedi | go ruta | ||
| Twi (Akan) | nkyerɛkyerɛ | ||
Teaching in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | تعليم | ||
| تعليم means not only "teaching" but also "that which is taught and learned" or "knowledge". | |||
| Hebrew | הוֹרָאָה | ||
| "הוֹרָאָה" also means "an order". | |||
| Pashto | ښوونه | ||
| *ښوونه* also means to instruct, direct, guide, or train. | |||
| Arabic | تعليم | ||
| تعليم means not only "teaching" but also "that which is taught and learned" or "knowledge". | |||
Teaching in Western European Languages
| Albanian | mësimdhënie | ||
| Etymology: 'mësim' (lesson) + '-dhënie' (giving). Also means 'instruction', 'learning', 'education'. | |||
| Basque | irakaskuntza | ||
| The term "irakaskuntza" comes from "irakatsi", meaning "to teach or learn", and the suffix "-untza", which denotes "action or process". | |||
| Catalan | ensenyament | ||
| In Catalan, "ensenyament" can also mean "sign" or "indication". | |||
| Croatian | nastava | ||
| "Nastava" in Croatian also means "an attack" or "an offense". | |||
| Danish | undervisning | ||
| The Danish word "undervisning" literally means "to show you under something" in an educational sense. | |||
| Dutch | onderwijs | ||
| "Onderwijs" is etymologically related to "dwijnend onderwijs", "instruction for the dying." | |||
| English | teaching | ||
| The word 'teaching' derives from the Old English word 'tacan', meaning 'to show' or 'to point out' | |||
| French | enseignement | ||
| The French word "enseignement" can also mean "instruction" or "education," and derives from the Latin word "insignare," meaning "to mark" or "to inscribe." | |||
| Frisian | lesjaan | ||
| The verb "lesjaan" stems from Middle Dutch "lesen" and German "lesen" and originally meant "to read", as the ability to read was essential for teaching. | |||
| Galician | ensinando | ||
| Galician "ensinando" is related to Latin "scientia" (knowledge), which led to Spanish "enseñar" and Galician "ensinar" (to teach) | |||
| German | lehren | ||
| "Lehren" is derived from the Old High German "leren" meaning "to learn". | |||
| Icelandic | kennsla | ||
| "Kenn(sla)" (a word which today has come to mean "teaching," although the root meaning is the transfer of knowledge from one person to another) was once a term signifying a payment of some kind (as in a payment to a priest) but over time the term "payment" transitioned into meaning the imparting of knowledge, a payment of knowledge for a payment of money. | |||
| Irish | ag múineadh | ||
| The Irish word "ag múineadh" can also mean "at educating" or "in the act of instruction". | |||
| Italian | insegnamento | ||
| The word "insegnamento" is derived from the Latin word "insignare," which means "to mark" or "to signify." | |||
| Luxembourgish | enseignement | ||
| The Luxembourgish word "Enseignement" is derived from the French word "enseignement", meaning "teaching" or "instruction", and has a similar meaning in Luxembourgish. | |||
| Maltese | tagħlim | ||
| "Tagħlim" is derived from the Arabic word "ta'leem" which means "learning" or "education". | |||
| Norwegian | undervisning | ||
| The word undervisning is derived from under (below) and vise (show), so it originally meant to show something to someone who is at a lower level. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | ensino | ||
| The verb `ensinar` derives from the Latin *insignare*, meaning “to make a sign on or in,” or “to mark.” | |||
| Scots Gaelic | teagasg | ||
| In Gaelic, `teagasg` means `instruction` and `education`, whereas its cognates in other Celtic languages primarily mean `preaching`, reflecting the importance of Christianity in the Gaelic-speaking world | |||
| Spanish | enseñando | ||
| The verb "enseñar" derives from the Latin "insignare," meaning "to imprint," hence its relation to instruction and knowledge. | |||
| Swedish | undervisning | ||
| The Swedish word "undervisning" also refers to lower-level education below university level, which is taught in Swedish schools from years 1–9. | |||
| Welsh | dysgu | ||
| "Dysgu" shares the same root with "disg" (learning) as well as "deall" (understanding), signifying their interconnectedness. | |||
Teaching in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | вучэнне | ||
| The word "вучэнне" is also used in Belarusian to refer to the process of studying or learning. | |||
| Bosnian | podučavanje | ||
| The word "podučavanje" comes from the verb "podučiti", which means "to instruct" or "to educate". | |||
| Bulgarian | преподаване | ||
| Bulgarian 'преподаване' is derived from the Old Church Slavonic word 'прѣдати', meaning 'to pass on' or 'to hand over'. | |||
| Czech | výuka | ||
| The word "výuka" is derived from the verb "vyučovat", which means "to teach" or "to instruct". | |||
| Estonian | õpetamine | ||
| The Estonian word "õpetamine" not only means "teaching" but also refers to "learning" and "instruction". | |||
| Finnish | opettaminen | ||
| The word "opettaminen" is derived from the verb "opettaa" meaning "to teach", which in turn comes from the Proto-Germanic root *us- "to learn." | |||
| Hungarian | tanítás | ||
| The word 'tanítás' is cognate with the Finnish word 'tunnistaminen', meaning 'recognition', suggesting a shared etymology related to knowledge and perception. | |||
| Latvian | mācīt | ||
| The word "mācīt" can also mean "to learn" or "to study" in Latvian. | |||
| Lithuanian | mokymas | ||
| The word "mokymas" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root "men-g", meaning "to think". | |||
| Macedonian | настава | ||
| 'Настава' also refers to a school lesson or curriculum. | |||
| Polish | nauczanie | ||
| Nauczanie comes from the Old Polish word "nauka", which means "knowledge, learning". | |||
| Romanian | predare | ||
| The Romanian word "predare" also means "to hand over" or "to surrender". | |||
| Russian | обучение | ||
| "Учить" comes from "ученик," meaning "learner," which in turn comes from the Old Slavonic "oukati" or "to learn," akin to the Lithuanian "mokyti" or "to teach" and the Old Norse "mata" or "force, strength". | |||
| Serbian | учити | ||
| Учити originated from the Latin 'docere', the source of 'educate' and 'doctor' in English, but also means 'learning'. | |||
| Slovak | výučba | ||
| The word "výučba" is derived from the verb "učiť" which means "to teach" and the suffix "-ba" which forms abstract nouns. | |||
| Slovenian | poučevanje | ||
| The word "poučevanje" can also refer to the act of lecturing someone in a patronizing manner in Slovenian. | |||
| Ukrainian | викладання | ||
| In Ukrainian, “викладання” can also refer to higher education or a course of lectures. | |||
Teaching in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | শিক্ষকতা | ||
| The word "শিক্ষকতা" is derived from the Sanskrit word "शिष्यः" (disciple) and means "the act of instructing or educating disciples." | |||
| Gujarati | શિક્ષણ | ||
| Gujarati word "શિક્ષણ" also means discipline, control, punishment, or initiation, akin to Sanskrit "śikṣa". | |||
| Hindi | शिक्षण | ||
| The word 'शिक्षण' was borrowed from Pali and originally meant 'discipline'. | |||
| Kannada | ಬೋಧನೆ | ||
| The word "ಬೋಧನೆ" is derived from the root "ಬೋಧ" (meaning understanding) and is also used to describe a type of knowledge or science. | |||
| Malayalam | അദ്ധ്യാപനം | ||
| The word "അദ്ധ്യാപനം" is derived from the Sanskrit word "adhyapana", which means "to impart knowledge". | |||
| Marathi | शिक्षण | ||
| The Marathi word "शिक्षण" (teaching) is derived from the Sanskrit root "शिक्ष" (to teach or instruct), which is itself derived from the Proto-Indo-European root "*seq-" (to follow or accompany). | |||
| Nepali | शिक्षण | ||
| The word "शिक्षण" in Nepali also means "the process of learning or acquiring knowledge." | |||
| Punjabi | ਸਿਖਾਉਣਾ | ||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | ඉගැන්වීම | ||
| In Pali, the root of "ඉගැන්වීම" is "igha" meaning "to show, exhibit" or "to make known". | |||
| Tamil | கற்பித்தல் | ||
| "கற்பித்தல்" is also the name of a rare South Indian flower of the genus "Pavonia". | |||
| Telugu | బోధన | ||
| The Telugu word "బోధన" (teaching) is derived from the Sanskrit word "बोधन" (teaching) which in turn comes from the root "बुध्" (to perceive, to understand), implying a process of knowledge transfer from one individual to another. | |||
| Urdu | پڑھانا | ||
| {"text": "The word "پڑھانا" (parhānā) in Urdu derives from the Sanskrit word "pra-bodhana," which originally meant "to wake up" or "to awaken"."} | |||
Teaching in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 教学 | ||
| "教学" also refers to the teaching materials and curriculum. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 教學 | ||
| "教學" literally means "education" (教) + "instruction" (學), so it emphasizes both the imparting and the receiving of knowledge. | |||
| Japanese | 教える | ||
| The word "教える" (oshieru) comes from the Old Japanese word "oshiyuru," meaning "to guide or instruct." | |||
| Korean | 가르치는 | ||
| "가르치다" originally meant "to make something visible or clear". | |||
| Mongolian | заах | ||
| "Заах" is also a Mongolian idiom meaning "to have a strong desire or intention to do something" or "to be determined to do something." | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | သင်ကြားမှု | ||
Teaching in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | pengajaran | ||
| The root word 'ajar' can also refer to 'to point out,' 'to show the correct way,' or 'to demonstrate with the fingers.' | |||
| Javanese | mulang | ||
| Mulang's root word 'mula' refers to origin and the prefix 'mu-' indicates a process or state, giving 'mulang' the meaning of bringing something back to its origin. | |||
| Khmer | ការបង្រៀន | ||
| The word "ការបង្រៀន" ("teaching") in Khmer is derived from the word "បង្រៀន" ("to teach"), which comes from the Sanskrit root "vṛ" meaning "to choose" or "to select". | |||
| Lao | ການສິດສອນ | ||
| Malay | mengajar | ||
| The word "mengajar" in Malay is derived from the Sanskrit word "ajna", meaning "to know" or "to command". | |||
| Thai | การเรียนการสอน | ||
| การเรียนการสอน (teaching) comes from the Pali word "karaniyakam", which means "something to be done". | |||
| Vietnamese | giảng bài | ||
| Giảng bài, an activity at Vietnamese temples involving a monk expounding on teachings and scriptures, could also mean scolding or reprimanding in informal usage. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | pagtuturo | ||
Teaching in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | tədris | ||
| Cognate with Persian تدریس and ultimately from Arabic درس (dars) "instruction, lesson". | |||
| Kazakh | оқыту | ||
| The word "оқыту" in Kazakh can also mean "to teach something to someone" or "to give someone a lesson." | |||
| Kyrgyz | окутуу | ||
| The word "окутуу" is derived from the Turkic word "*uqut-", meaning "to speak" or "to teach." | |||
| Tajik | таълим | ||
| In the Quran, the word 'ta'lim' also signifies the act of divine revelation. | |||
| Turkmen | öwretmek | ||
| Uzbek | o'qitish | ||
| The word "o'qitish" can also refer to the process of learning or education in general. | |||
| Uyghur | ئوقۇتۇش | ||
Teaching in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | ke aʻo ʻana | ||
| The Hawaiian word for 'teaching' ('ke aʻo ʻana') also has a broader sense of 'giving knowledge' | |||
| Maori | whakaakoranga | ||
| The verb whakaakoranga can also be used to refer to the imparting of wisdom or knowledge. | |||
| Samoan | aʻoaʻo atu | ||
| Aʻoaʻo atu can also mean "teaching" in the context of a parent instructing their children. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | pagtuturo | ||
| The word "pagtuturo" is derived from the root word "turo" which means to point or direct, implying the act of guiding or instructing someone. | |||
Teaching in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | yatichaña | ||
| Guarani | mbo’epy rehegua | ||
Teaching in International Languages
| Esperanto | instruado | ||
| The word "instruado" also means "having been taught" in Esperanto. | |||
| Latin | docens | ||
| The word "docens" is also used in Latin to refer to a person who teaches, typically a teacher or a professor. | |||
Teaching in Others Languages
| Greek | διδασκαλία | ||
| The word "διδασκαλία" also means "doctrine" or "theory" in Greek. | |||
| Hmong | qhia ntawv | ||
| The word "qhia ntawv" is derived from the verb "qhia", meaning "to tell", and the noun "ntawv", meaning "book" or "writing. | |||
| Kurdish | hînkirin | ||
| The word "hînkirin" (teaching) also connotes "nurturing" or "upbringing" in Kurdish. | |||
| Turkish | öğretim | ||
| "Öğretim" can also mean "doctrine" or "instruction" in Turkish. | |||
| Xhosa | ukufundisa | ||
| "Ukufundisa" is cognate to "funda," which means "to learn." It signifies the reciprocal nature of teaching and learning. | |||
| Yiddish | לערנען | ||
| The Yiddish word 'lernen' originates from the German word 'lernen' and originally meant 'to study' or 'to learn'. | |||
| Zulu | ukufundisa | ||
| Uku-fundisa derives from ukú-funda, a verb meaning "to learn" in Zulu. | |||
| Assamese | শিক্ষকতা কৰা | ||
| Aymara | yatichaña | ||
| Bhojpuri | पढ़ावे के काम करत बानी | ||
| Dhivehi | ކިޔަވައިދިނުމެވެ | ||
| Dogri | सिखाना | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | pagtuturo | ||
| Guarani | mbo’epy rehegua | ||
| Ilocano | panangisuro | ||
| Krio | we dɛn de tich | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | فێرکردن | ||
| Maithili | अध्यापन करब | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯇꯝꯕꯤꯕꯥ꯫ | ||
| Mizo | zirtirna pek a ni | ||
| Oromo | barsiisuu | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଶିକ୍ଷାଦାନ | ||
| Quechua | yachachiy | ||
| Sanskrit | अध्यापनम् | ||
| Tatar | укыту | ||
| Tigrinya | ምምሃር | ||
| Tsonga | ku dyondzisa | ||