teachable moment
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of teachable moment
First recorded in 1935–40
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.
Economists keep warning politicians that incentives matter, and the latest teachable moment concerns taxation and innovation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
This is a cautionary tale — and a teachable moment — for anyone who has a blended family, with children from previous marriages.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 30, 2026
That line stayed with me when I spoke to Gregory Rogers, a criminal-justice lecturer and former FBI agent who’s been trying to turn the assassination into a teachable moment.
From Slate ● Oct. 30, 2025
It’s a bit cliché, but this must become a teachable moment.
From Salon ● Jan. 21, 2025
When Sarah and Daniel and I run through our allowances and ask to borrow money from our folks, we get a huge lecture, and then they make it a teachable moment.
From "Liar, Liar" by Gary Paulsen
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.
