Apprendre et enseigner

Question

I have seen that the verb « apprendre » can mean both to learn and to teach in French. And I also know that « enseigner » can sometimes mean to teach (but in a narrower sense, and it can never mean to learn). My question is : Can one say in this exercise «  je lui ENSEIGNERAI à être indépendante et forte » or is this just a wrong usage of this verb?

Accepted Answer

Hi Paul,
Very interesting question!
I would say that in the case of a parent teaching a child you would use 'apprendre à' and that you would use 'enseigner' to describe what teachers do -
C'est ce prof qui m'a enseigné l'anglais = This is the teacher who taught me English
Mon père m'a appris à conduire à l'âge de 18 ans = My father taught me to drive, aged 18
Hope this helps!