"Apt" Is Not A False Friend

I am in the process of going through Mark Ward’s list of “false friends” in the KJV. These are words that Ward has determined no longer mean today what they meant when the KJV was translated. As I pointed out in the previous article, Ward has practically zero literary training or experience to prepare him for this task. I am going through his list using my extensive knowledge of English literature combined with the tools that I use as a researcher to determine which if any of Ward’s “false friends” actually fit in that category.

In this article, I want to consider the word apt as it is used in I Timothy 3:2 and II Timothy 2:24. Both of these verses include the phrase apt to teach in describing the proper qualities of a pastor. Ward claimed in a video that modern readers misunderstand this phrase because the modern word apt is only used to describe something that is likely to happen. According to Ward, if we read these verses with this meaning, we would conclude that pastors should be “likely to teach” in the same way that a man who loves to tinker with cars is likely to be in his garage. Ward claims that this gives a false impression of the verses because apt didn’t mean “likely” in 1611. He claims that, in the seventeenth century, the word apt meant “able,” and the phrase should be translated as “able to teach” so modern readers can understand it properly.
 
There are a huge number of errors in Ward’s analysis of this phrase. First, the Greek definition that he provided for διδακτικός (didaktikos) was overly simplistic. I suspect that this error stems mostly from the fact that Ward doesn’t understand how to use a lexicon any more than he knows how to use a dictionary. He treats entries in lexicons and dictionaries as simplistic, dictatorial statements of fact rather than as study guides intended to point us in the right direction. As such, when Ward read the BDAG entry for didaktikos, he read “skillful in teaching” and assumed that this phrase was the authoritative translation. He didn’t bother to trace the etymology of the word didaktikos or study it any further to make sure he understood it.
 
Had he studied the word further, Ward could have discovered that it has a much deeper meaning than just “skillful in teaching.” The word didaktikos ultimately comes from the verb διδάσκω (didasko) which means “to teach.” This was actually shown on the screen in Ward’s video. The BDAG lexicon lists didasko as the root word for didaktikos. It’s possible that Ward may have noticed that and may have looked up didasko to see that it meant “to teach,” but if that’s as far as he went in his study, he probably made the somewhat understandable error of assuming that didaktikos can be translated as “skillful in teaching” only because its literal meaning is something like “one who teaches.”
 
The problem with that assumption would be that there is another word in Greek that means “one who teaches.” That is the word διδακτός (didaktos). The word in I Timothy 3:2 and II Timothy 2:24 is actually two steps removed from its root word. The progression from root to branch is didasko to didaktos to didaktikos. In English, the progression would go from “to teach” to “one who teaches” to “one who is characterized by teaching.” The word didaktikos doesn’t just mean “skillful in teaching” as Ward asserts. It refers to someone who acts as if he had been created specifically for the purpose of teaching.
 
Shortly after the KJV was translated, the word didaktikos was adopted into the English language as the word didactic. When applied to a person, this word means “one who has teaching as a primary purpose.” Both the English word didactic and the Greek word didaktikos carry the implication of being skilled at teaching, but that is not the only implication which can be drawn from these terms. They both also refer to someone who is likely to be found teaching. If a man has teaching as his primary purpose in life, he will develop the skills necessary to do the job well, and the only way to develop those skills is to put them into practice over and over. Thus, a didactic pastor is a pastor who is both skillful in teaching and one who is likely to be found teaching.
 
Translating didaktikos as didactic would be an option for us today since the two are literally the same word, but the phrase apt to teach is still a particularly fitting translation since the English word apt conveys the idea of both being skilled at something and being likely to do it. Ward erroneously separates these two meanings of apt as if there are two separate words both spelled apt. What Ward failed to notice is that the primary definition of the word apt is “fitted, suited, or qualified.” The concept of being skilled and the concept of being likely both fit under that primary definition. Apt can be used to describe someone who is skilled at a task because someone who is fitted, suited to, or qualified for a task must necessarily be skilled at it. Likewise, apt can be used to describe someone likely to do something because someone who is fitted, suited to, or qualified for a particular task is likely to be found doing it. The word retains both senses, and both senses are implied (though often to varying degrees) in almost all uses of apt.
 
Given that apt implies both skill and probability, it is reasonable to use the phrase apt to teach as a translation of didaktikos. When a church is looking for a pastor, they may run across a man who is likely to teach but is not very good at it. Maybe he struggles with properly using the tools of the trade like dictionaries and lexicons, but whatever the reason for the lack of skill, the church should not have a pastor who teaches often but with little to no skill. On the other hand, they may have an applicant who is incredibly skilled at teaching but just doesn’t want to do it very often. Maybe he’s shy and finds himself unable to speak when he stands in front of people. A pastor who is an extremely skillful teacher will do no good for the church if he only rarely puts those skills into practice. Pastors matching only a partial definition of apt should be avoided by the church. The kind of man that God wants leading His flock is a man who is both skilled at teaching and likely to be found teaching. Both senses of apt are implied by the word didaktikos, and both are necessary qualities of a pastor.
 
This exposes a flaw in Ward’s argument, but it doesn’t address the underlying claim. If both senses of apt are necessary for a proper understanding of didaktikos in these passages, then it follows that apt to teach might not be a good translation if one of the senses has passed out of use in the English language. That possibility behooves us to investigate Ward’s claim that this has happened. Has the word apt lost the sense of being skillful in our modern parlance so that it is only ever used in the sense of being likely?
 
When we look at the uses of the word apt today, we find that Ward’s claim is completely unfounded. Apt is still used in both senses frequently. Here are a few examples of apt being used in the skillful sense:

“It’s hard to find a player with a silkier touch and, when in form, someone more apt at side-stepping and running in circles around opponents.”
https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/37613318/barcelona-no-money-transfers-how-youth-help-crisis
 
“Lopez is apt at tipping balls and boxing out so that others can grab loose balls.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/10/sports/basketball/nba-finals-lopez-ayton.html
 
“The tempo will also come as their rookie passer becomes more accustomed to the speed of the NFL and becomes more apt at reading NFL defenses.”
https://www.si.com/nfl/jaguars/news/meyer-working-quickly-to-bring-increased-tempo-to-jaguars-offense
 
“These are skills that nearly every apt web developer has.”
https://thedailystar.net/shout/news/rethinking-education-and-future-skills-3315066
 
“Therefore, every employee must be apt in problem solving skills.”
https://www.financialexpress.com/jobs-career/education-impact-of-soft-skills-development-on-improving-university-3340266/
 
“Disclosed that study has proven that the male folks are more apt to digital skills than the millennial woman.”
https://businessday.ng/news/article/experts-advocate-information-as-key-to-bridging-digital-gender-gaps-in-workplace/
 
“You will hardly feel like journaling if your writing skills are not apt. Thus, improving your written communication is important.”
https://www.galwaydaily.com/business/the-importance-of-writing-skills-for-students/
 
“Mohit feels that every youth should be empowered with apt digital skills to encash the countless opportunities.”
http://www.netnewsledger.com/2021/01/26/mohit-patel-a-young-dynamic-digital-marketing-guru-from-rajasthan-india/
 
“He also commended the organization for empowering people with apt skills to learn and earn from the stock market.”
https://www.zeebiz.com/small-business/news-incomet-is-praised-under-startup-india-program-135211
 
“She does that and still knows nothing about him beyond his velvety voice and apt teaching skills.”
https://ew.com/theater/2018/01/25/phantom-of-the-opera-30th-anniversary/
 
“Previous research has shown that dogs are apt at reading verbal and visual cues.”
https://nypost.com/2024/07/28/lifestyle/dogs-can-smell-their-humans-stress-and-its-bumming-them-out-study/
 
“Citizens who have proven to be apt at spotting real sources can now trigger follow-up observations.”
https://phys.org/news/2024-08-astronomers-newly-black-holes.html
 
“The company has also been apt at growing shareholder equity in an attractive manner.”
https://seekingalpha.com/article/4601142-k-plus-s-aktiengesellschaft-after-a-drop-there-is-upside-to-be-had-here
 
“It is appropriate for Bozoma Saint John, who is apt at branding herself, to have a flourishing career in marketing.”
https://www.forbes.com/sites/yolandabaruch/2023/05/22/bozoma-saint-john-dove-and-linkedin-unite-to-end-race-based-hair-discrimination/
 
“Initial data show that Omicron is apt at getting past the immune defenses created by the vaccines.”
https://en.as.com/en/2021/12/25/latest_news/1640429081_900416.html
 
“While Disney is better known for its happily ever afters, the House of Mouse is also apt at conjuring more sorrowful emotions.”
https://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/arts-and-culture/g38628110/sad-movies-on-disney-plus/
 
“This type of virus is especially apt at reshuffling its genome.”
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2022/05/hepatitis-kids-adenovirus-covid/629849/
 
“He’s proven particularly apt at moving cryptocurrency markets.”
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/dear-tesla-stock-fans-get-ready-for-a-big-self-driving-catalyst-later-this-month/ar-AAO2fIz
 
“They are more apt at working together for the common good of the team succeeding.”
https://www.rollingstone.com/culture-council/articles/embrace-opportunity-entrepreneurship-1246389/
 
“With almost 100 tackles on the year, 96, he’s apt at taking down ball carriers when he gets close.”
https://news.yahoo.com/know-foe-georgia-tech-yellow-015615637.html
 
“We are not very apt at the moment in dealing with those kinds of issues.”
https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/life/women-of-the-century/2020/08/26/madeleine-albright-first-female-secretary-state-courage-fascism/5535871002 /
 
“Gen Zers are generally very apt at being able to trace the origins of stories.”
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/10/11/gen-z-misinformation-politics-news-conspiracy-423913
 
“Someone who checks in at 6’ 7” shouldn’t be so apt at getting through and over bigger opponents.”
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2888735-ranking-nbas-top-15-centers-this-season
 
“He exhibits vulnerability and invincibility in equal measure, but he’s just as apt at villainy.”
https://www.theringer.com/music/2020/5/11/21251822/pitchfork-perfect-review-history-10-fiona-apple-kanye-west-trail-of-dead
 
As you can see apt is still used with an emphasis on skill by a very diverse set of publications. A word that is equally at home in ESPN and The Bleacher Report as it is in Politico, The New York Times, and Yahoo News while also fitting comfortably into an article in Town and Country Magazine should never be described as archaic or obsolete. Apt may be difficult for a small portion of the population to understand (how else could Ward have misunderstood it for so long), but it is definitely not a “false friend.”