Masterful vs Learned - What's the difference?
masterful | learned |
Of or pertaining to the manner of a master of an art, technique, profession, or craft; masterly.
:The brushwork on the skin tones was masterful .
In the manner of a master; very skillful.
Having or showing the qualities of a master vis-a-vis a dependent or subordinate; authoritative; domineering.
* 1847 , Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre , Chapter 14, Rochester to Jane by the fire:
* 1868-69 , Louisa May Alcott, Little Women , Chapter 38:
* 1908 , E. M. Forster, A Room with a View , Chapter 18, Lucy to Mr. Beebe about Cecil:
(US) (learn): taught
Having much learning, knowledgeable, erudite; highly educated.
* 1590 , Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene , III.iii:
* 1854 , Charles Edward Pollock, Lake v. Plaxton , 156 Eng. Rep. 412 (Exch.) 414; 10 Ex. 199, 200 (Eng.)
* {{quote-magazine
, year=2011
, month=Feb
, author=Jess Lourey
, coauthors=
, title=A Pyramid Approach to Novel Writing
, volume=124
, issue=2
, page=30-32
, magazine=Writer
, passage=The book opens with the Time Traveler dining with learned peers in late 1800s England, where he is trying to convince them that he has invented a time machine.
}}
* {{quote-magazine
, year=2011
, month=Spring
, author=Jill Lepore
, coauthors=
, title=How Longfellow Woke the Dead
, volume=80
, issue=2
, page=33-46
, magazine=American Scholar
, passage=HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW used to be both the best-known poet in the English-speaking world and the most beloved, adored by the learned and the lowly ...
}}
(learn)
Derived from experience; acquired by learning.
As adjectives the difference between masterful and learned
is that masterful is of or pertaining to the manner of a master of an art, technique, profession, or craft; masterly while learned is (poetic).masterful
English
Alternative forms
* masterfull (archaic)Adjective
(en adjective)- The masterful conducting ensured the orchestra gave of their best .
- ...do you not agree with me that I have a right to be a little masterful , abrupt; perhaps exacting, sometimes, on the grounds I stated...
- When John spoke in that masterful tone, Meg always obeyed, and never regretted her docility.
- ...it was that he is so masterful . I found that he wouldn't let me go my own way.
Usage notes
Historically, definition 3 of masterful''''' (authoritative, domineering) has long been losing ground to definitions 1 and 2 (masterly, skillful). In nineteenth century US usage of '''''masterful , definition 3 was almost always meant (10:1). In contemporary US usage, however, the situation is reversed: definitions 1 or 2 are usually meant (10:1).Derived terms
* masterfully * masterfulnesslearned
English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) lerned, from (etyl)Verb
(head)Adjective
(en adjective)- the learned Merlin, well could tell, / Vnder what coast of heauen the man did dwell [...].
- My learned Brother Cresswell directed the jury to make the calculation [...].
- My learned friend (a formal, courteous description of a lawyer)
Alternative forms
*Usage notes
* This adjectival sense of this word is sometimes spelled with a grave accent. This is meant to indicate that the second ‘e’ is pronounced as , rather than being silent, as in the verb form. This usage is largely restricted to poetry and other works in which it is important that the adjective’s disyllabicity be made explicit.Synonyms
* (having much knowledge) brainy, erudite, knowledgeable, scholarly, educated * See alsoAntonyms
* (having little knowledge) ignorant, stupid, thick, uneducatedDerived terms
* learnedly * learnednessEtymology 2
From (etyl)Alternative forms
* learntVerb
(head)Adjective
(en adjective)- Everyday behavior is an overlay of learned behavior over instinct.