learned
Americanadjective
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having much knowledge; scholarly; erudite.
learned professors.
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connected or involved with the pursuit of knowledge, especially of a scholarly nature.
a learned journal.
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of or showing learning or knowledge; well-informed.
learned in the ways of the world.
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acquired by experience, study, etc..
learned behavior.
adjective
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having great knowledge or erudition
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involving or characterized by scholarship
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(prenominal) a title applied in referring to a member of the legal profession, esp to a barrister
my learned friend
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of learned
First recorded in 1300–50, learned is from the Middle English word lerned. See learn, -ed 2
Explanation
If you're learned (pronounced LUR-ned), you're highly educated, or you have or show a profound knowledge of some kind. The adjective learned comes from the verb learn. You can use it either to describe someone as having a lot of education, like the learned shopkeeper who used to tell you about the Trojan War while you picked out your candy, or to describe something that doesn't come naturally, but has to be learned (in which case it's pronounced LURND). If you reward your dog when she howls, then her howling will become a learned (LURND) behavior.
Vocabulary lists containing learned
Beowulf vocabulary
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Words to Describe a Teacher
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But while searching for cheaper flights, I learned a surprisingly useful trick: You should keep tracking your flight even after you book it.
From MarketWatch • May 19, 2026
In Peter Bonnington, Antonelli has someone of vast experience, who has "learned from the greats", as Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff put it in Miami.
From BBC • May 19, 2026
As he learned the game, he was mostly alone with his father.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 18, 2026
But a few days before we meet, Gjoshe learned he was among several Scunthorpe players not being retained.
From BBC • May 17, 2026
Nollie, we soon learned, had been taken to the police station around the corner, to one of the cells in back.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
