it is impossible to make changes in already posted texts, so let me post again, fixed version of my previous post: Учить means both to learn and to teach. It depens on an object. Я начал учить математику - I began to learn (or probably better to say - study) math. Я начал учить студентов математике - I began to teach students math. Учить кого-либо - to teach somebody is more often used variant and preferable. If you want to say "to learn math" it is better to say "изучать математику". Учить- Imperfective Aspect (Несовершенный вид) Выучить - Perfective Aspect (Совершенный вид) I am afraid I am not enough skilled to explain the difference between Учить and Выучить. It is grammar nuance about the difference between imperfective and perfective aspects. I would explain it like this: Учить - to learn\to teach something\someone (simple tense) Выучить - to have\has\had learned\taught something\someone (perfect tense) examples: Я учу математику - I learn\study math. Я выучил стихотворение - I have learned the poem.

in Russian it may mean both, to learn and to teach выучить means the result

Учить means both to learn and to teach. It depens on an object. Я начал учить математику - I began to learn math. Я начал учить студентов математике - I began to teach students math. Учить- Imperfective Aspect (Совершенный вид) Выучить - Perfective Aspect (Несовершенный вид) I am afraid I am not enough skilled to explain the difference between Учить and Выучить. It is grammar nuance about the difference between imperfective and perfective aspects. I would explain it like this: Учить - to learn\to teach someone\something (simple tense) Выучить - to have\has\had learnt\taught someone\something (perfect tense)

One is perfective and the other is imperfective. It depends on whether or not you are still doing something. Я учитал студентов потом услышал шум. I was teaching (still in the process of teaching) the students then I heard a noise. Я выучитал студентов после услышал удара. I taught (action complete) the students after I heard the noise. Hopefully that helps. We use other words to make perfect and imperfect along with adding -ing. Russian sometimes actually has separate perfective verbs and other times just add a prefix.