English Teacher? Teacher of English?

Ernesto in El Salvador asks:
I would like to know what the correct form is: English teacher or teacher of English.

Both are correct, though "teacher of English" is more precise. An English teacher might be English by nationality and a teacher of biology, for example. But the majority of native-born English speakers would say "English teacher."

One reason I enjoy this blog is that questions like this make me think again about my own language. Imagine a headline: "English teachers are paid less than French teachers." Are we thinking about nationalities of teachers or the subjects they teach? We would need much more information to understand the meaning!

Comments

[Ernesto]

Congratulations Mr. Crawford!!!

You have a very oustanding and useful site.

[Ernesto]

Thank you so much Professor Crawford.

Sites like these are the one that make me feel proud of my profession because our job is to help students and collegues.

[Joanalemansonoqua2]

Interesting.