With vs From

[toloue_man]

Of the following sentences, which one is correct?

I took Linguitics with Mr.Smith
I took Linguitics from Mr.Smith

 

[bhaisahab]

Of the following sentences, which one is correct?

I took Linguitics with Mr.Smith
I took Linguitics from Mr.Smith

"I took Linguistics with Mr.Smith."

 

[SoothingDave]

I think they have two different meaning. "With" means he was a fellow student. "From" means he was the teacher.

 

[5jj]

In British English, '... with Mr Smith' could mean a teacher or a student; context would usually make the meaning clear. '... from Mr Smith' is unnatural.

 

[toloue_man]

There are different answers so I'm in doubt which the right answer is.

 

[5jj]

There are different answers so I'm in doubt which the right answer is.

SoothingDave is a speaker of American English; I am a speaker of British English. There are areas of usage in which the two varieties differ; this is one of them. If the variety you are learning is BrE, stick with my answer; if it's AmE, stick with Dave's.

In any case, context will normally make the difference clear, even if you choose a preposition that sounds a little strange to your listener. If you are worried about this, change the structure: 'Mr Smith taught me French'; 'Charlie Smith was in my French class at college'.