teach
To impart knowledge or instruct someone in how to do something.
Etymology
From Old English tǣcan (to show, to instruct), from Proto-Germanic *taikijaną (to show), from PIE *deyḱ- (to show, to point). The semantic shift from 'show' to 'teach' is natural: teaching is fundamentally showing someone something. The same root gave Latin dīcere (to say), Greek deiknunai (to show), and English token.
The Journey: *deyḱ- → teach
*deyḱ-
*taikijaną
tǣcan
teach
Cognates Across Languages
These words in other languages descend from the same PIE root *deyḱ-. They are not borrowings but independent inheritances from a common ancestor.
| Language | Word |
|---|---|
| Greek | deiknunai (δεικνύναι) — to show |
| Latin | dīcere — to say, declare |
| German | zeigen — to show |
| Sanskrit | diśati — he points out |
Did You Know?
Teach and token are doublets from the same PIE root — both involve 'showing.' A token was originally a sign or symbol that showed or proved something, while to teach was to show someone how.
This word descends from the Proto-Indo-European root *deyḱ-. See the full root page for descendant trees, sound law references, and scholarly discussion.