teach

*tricks of the trade

special skills and knowledge associated with any trade or profession. (*Typically: know ~; learn ~; show someone ~; teach someone ~.) I know a few tricks of the trade that make things easier. I learned the tricks of the trade from my uncle.

See also: trade, trick

teach someone a lesson

to get even with someone for bad behavior. John tripped me, so I punched him. That ought to teach him a lesson. That taught me a lesson. I won't do it again.

See also: lesson

teach one's grandmother to suck eggs

Fig. to try to tell or show someone more knowledgeable or experienced than oneself how to do something. Don't suggest showing Mary how to knit. It will be like teaching your grandmother to suck eggs. Don't teach your grandmother to suck eggs. Bob has been playing tennis for years.

See also: egg, suck

that'll teach someone

Inf. What happened to someone is a suitable punishment! (The someone is usually a pronoun.) Bill: Tom, who has cheated on his taxes for years, finally got caught. Sue: That'll teach him. Bill: Gee, I got a ticket for speeding. Fred: That'll teach you!

Those who can, do; those who can't, teach.

Prov. People who are able to do something well can do that thing for a living, while people who are not able to do anything that well make a living by teaching. (Used to disparage teachers. From George Bernard Shaw's Man and Superman.) Bob: I'm so discouraged. My writing teacher told me my novel is hopeless. Jane: Don't listen to her, Bob. Remember: those who can, do; those who can't, teach.

See also: those, who

You cannot teach an old dog new tricks.

Prov. Someone who is used to doing things a certain way cannot change. (Usually not polite to say about the person you are talking to; you can say it about yourself or about a third person.) I've been away from school for fifteen years; I can't go back to college now. You can't teach an old dog new tricks. Kevin's doctor told him not to eat starchy food anymore, but Kevin still has potatoes with every meal. I guess you can't teach an old dog new tricks.

See also: cannot, dog, new, old, trick

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teach somebody a lesson

to punish someone so that they will not behave badly again The next time she's late, go without her. That should teach her a lesson.

See also: lesson

teach your grandmother to suck eggs  (British & Australian)

to give advice to someone about a subject that they already know more about than you You're teaching your grandmother to suck eggs, Ted. I've been playing this game since before you were born!

See also: egg, suck

tricks of the trade

clever methods that help you to do a job better or faster As a journalist, you learn the tricks of the trade pretty quickly or you don't survive.

See also: trade, trick

You can't teach an old dog new tricks.

something that you say which means it is difficult to make someone change the way they do something when they have been doing it the same way for a long time You're never going to teach your father at the age of 79 to use a computer. You can't teach an old dog new tricks, you know.

See also: dog, new, old, trick

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teach (somebody) a lesson also teach a lesson to somebody

to show what should not be done You would think that losing her job because she took too much time off would have taught her a lesson, but it's happened again! He had this idea that the government is evil and must be taught a lesson, so he blew up a government office.

See also: lesson

teach school

to instruct students in a school Buller left journalism to teach school, and he wrote several books about his experiences.

See also: school

tricks of the trade

methods that help you to do a job better or faster As a journalist, you learn the tricks of the trade pretty quickly or you don't get your stories.

See also: trade, trick