mentor
part of speech
noun (a mentor, mentors); verb (mentor, mentors, mentored, mentoring)
meaning for a pupil
1) An experienced and trusted person who helps and advises a younger or less experienced person over time. tree →
2) (verb) To help and guide someone in this way. tree →
3) (a name, Greek myth) Mentor was Odysseus's friend, who helped his son Telemachus – this is where the word comes from. tree →
sense in the lessons
In school, older pupils may mentor younger ones (a «buddy» or «peer mentor» scheme); new teachers have mentors too. In sport and jobs, a mentor helps you learn the ropes. In stories, a wise mentor guides the hero (like a wizard teaching a young apprentice). Phrases: «a peer mentor», «mentoring scheme», «my mentor».
examples
- My mentor in Year 6 helped me settle into school. tree →
- Our coach mentors the younger players. tree →
- In many stories, the hero has a wise old mentor. tree →
- She became a reading mentor for the infants. tree →
- A good mentor listens and gives honest advice. tree →
- The new teacher was mentored by an experienced colleague. tree →
- In the Odyssey, Mentor gave advice to young Telemachus. tree →
- Being a mentor helped him learn too. tree →
note
Countable: one mentor, two mentors. Regular verb: mentored, mentoring. The person helped is a «mentee». Not the same as «menthol» or «mental». Not a maths word.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «mentor» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.