Side note: Using design to or design for are both good phrases, but in some cases can seem to induce a note of uncertainty; they are designed for that purpose, but does not mean that they may be used for other purposes.
design to This is used for what an object has been made to do itself
The book is designed to learn English
This means that the book has been made so that it can learn English for itself - unlikely to happen
The book is designed to help [people] learn English
This means that the book has been made so that it can help people learn English, whether it is living or not.
The book is designed to be used as an aid for learning English.
This means that it has been made so that it can be used (passive) for learning English and allows itself to do it.
designed for
This is used with similar effect, but is normally followed by a present participle (verb ending in ing) or a noun - it can never be followed by a verb on its own.
The book is designed for learning English This means that the books use is for learning English.
The book is designed for those who struggle to learn English This means it has been made specifically for these people
Being a native speaker, I would likely say:
The book is designed to learn/for learning English with
How grammatically correct this is, I do not know, as it ends with a preposition, but this is how it would be commonly used in dialect.
However, it gets across the point this book is used as an aid to learn English, not to learn English itself.
If anyone has any corrections for the last example, I am very open to them :)
manpreet![Tuteehub forum best answer]()
Best Answer
2 years ago
I have a question regarding the usage of the word "design". Which is correct when I'd like to say that I wrote the book for the people to learn English grammar quickly, (1)this book is designed to learn English quickly or (2)this book is designed for learning English grammar quickly?