enseñar
/enseˈɲaɾ/
In Spanish, to teach is enseñar.
enseñar means to give someone knowledge or skill by explaining how to do something. It is also commonly used to mean 'to show', such as when you are showing someone a photo or a physical object.
Which one should you use?
While enseñar refers to the general act of teaching, the phrase dar clase is used to describe the specific professional act of conducting a lesson or teaching a course.
How does it change in a sentence?
When you are teaching a person, you use an indirect object pronoun (such as le or te) to indicate the person receiving the instruction. The noun form of this verb is enseñanza, which means teaching or instruction.
How do you pronounce it?
/enseˈɲaɾ/
Did you know?
- The verb enseñar shares the same root as the English word 'sign', as both stem from the idea of marking or pointing something out to make it visible.
- In traditional Spanish classrooms, students often use the formal usted when addressing a teacher to show respect, even if the teacher uses tú with them.
- While enseñar is used for teaching, the word educar is reserved for the broader process of upbringing and moral development of a child.
Examples in context
- Quiero enseñarte una cosa.I want to teach you something.This sentence uses enseñar to express the desire to show or teach something to someone.Tatoeba #2265377 by Shishir, translation #2033476 by CK
- Tom solía enseñar actuación.Tom used to teach acting.This sentence uses enseñar to describe a past habit of teaching a specific subject.Tatoeba #13953334 by ecorralest101, translation #8416054 by CK
- Su trabajo es enseñar inglés.His job is to teach English.This sentence uses enseñar to describe a person's professional role involving instruction.Tatoeba #1460038 by marcelostockle, translation #286424 by CK
- 52 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Javier and Sofía are talking about a new hobby.
- Javier¿Me puedes enseñar a cocinar?Can you teach me how to cook?
- SofíaSí, me encantaría enseñarte.Yes, I would love to teach you.
- JavierEres una muy buena profesora.You are a very good teacher.
- SofíaGracias, Javier, eres muy amable.Thank you, Javier, you are very kind.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry enseñar, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries enseñar, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
