# learned

Pronunciation: say "LUR-nid" US /ˈlɝnɪd/, UK /ˈlɜːnɪd/

## Verb

Pronunciation: say "LURND" US /lɝnd/, UK /lɜːnd/

1. Simple past and past participle of learn. — simple past and past participle of learn
   - Simple: Past tense and past participle of learn. Use it for the past, or after has, have, had, is, was or were.
   - _By the end of the semester, she had learned enough Spanish to order dinner and ask for directions._
   - _He learned the trade from his father and never forgot it._

## Adjective

2. Possessing extensive knowledge gained through study and reading; deeply educated and erudite.
   - Simple: Knowing a great deal from study and reading.
   - _The conference attracted learned scholars from a dozen countries._
   - _My grandfather was a learned man who read Latin and Greek for pleasure._
3. Acquired through experience, practice, or instruction, rather than being present from birth. (pronounced: say "LURND" US /lɝnd/, UK /lɜːnd/)
   - Simple: Gained through practice or experience, not present from birth.
   - _Many animal behaviors are learned rather than instinctive._
   - _Language is a learned skill that develops over years._
4. Marked by extensive scholarship and serious study; characteristic of academic or scholarly work.
   - Simple: Showing deep study and careful knowledge of a subject.
   - _She contributed several learned articles to the journal._
   - _The debate was conducted in suitably learned tones._
5. A courteous term applied to lawyers or judges, especially as a formal mode of address in court.
   - Simple: A polite word used in court to talk about a lawyer or judge.
   - _Counsel referred throughout to her learned colleague across the aisle._
   - _I defer to my learned friend on that point of procedure._

## Origin

**Meanings 2, 4–5** — From Middle English lerned, equivalent to learn + -ed. It replaced the earlier lered ("taught"), from Old English (ġe)lǣred, the past participle of lǣran ("to teach"). The verb learn once also meant "to teach," a sense now surviving only in nonstandard speech.
**Meanings 1, 3** — The past participle of the verb learn.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/learned (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).