Hello Romia: The basic difference is that a "teacher" has a college degree in education, and is qualified to teach English. A "tutor" can be any interested person, even without a college degree in English Studies, who is willing to assist others in speaking and writing English. I, for example, qualify as a "tutor" but not as a "teacher" because I do not have a college degree. I have a High School Diploma and no more. .

Tutor is defined by Oxford dictionary as a private teacher, typically one who teaches a single pupil or a very small group. While its definition for the word teacher seems erroneous, here it is: A teacher is a person who teaches in a school. For me all tutors are teachers but not all teachers are tutors.

A few years ago, while I was tutoring a small number of students in Hong Kong, I also wondered what the difference was between a teacher and a tutor. The dictionary definitions do not agree with my own definitions. I believe a teacher is one who presents new information to a student, usually, but not necessarily, in a classroom setting. A tutor helps a single student/learner, as well as small groups, to understand those parts of a topic with which the student is having a problem. The goal of the tutor would be to help the learner improve the knowledge and understanding, usually in order to improve the students' marks. How think the rest of you? Both Aegina's and Bruce's answers are great.