The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

educate \ed"u*cate\ ([e^]d"[-u]*k[=a]t), v. t. [imp. & p. p.
   Educated ([e^]d"[-u]*k[=a]`t[e^]d); p. pr. & vb. n.
   Educating ([e^]d"[-u]*k[=a]`t[i^]ng).] [L. educatus, p. p.
   of educare to bring up a child physically or mentally, to
   educate, fr. educere to lead forth, bring up (a child). See
   Educe.]
   To bring up or guide the powers of, as a child; to develop
   and cultivate, whether physically, mentally, or morally, but
   more commonly limited to the mental activities or senses; to
   expand, strengthen, and discipline, as the mind, a faculty,
   etc.; to form and regulate the principles and character of;
   to prepare and fit for any calling or business by systematic
   instruction; to cultivate; to train; to instruct; as, to
   educate a child; to educate the eye or the taste.

   Syn: To develop; instruct; teach; inform; enlighten; edify;
        bring up; train; breed; rear; discipline; indoctrinate.
        [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

educate
    v 1: give an education to; "We must educate our youngsters
         better"
    2: create by training and teaching; "The old master is training
       world-class violinists"; "we develop the leaders for the
       future" [syn: train, develop, prepare, educate]
    3: teach or refine to be discriminative in taste or judgment;
       "Cultivate your musical taste"; "Train your tastebuds"; "She
       is well schooled in poetry" [syn: educate, school,
       train, cultivate, civilize, civilise]

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

73 Moby Thesaurus words for "educate":
   acculturate, advance, ameliorate, amend, better, boost, brief,
   bring forward, bring up, broaden the mind, catechize, civilize,
   coach, cultivate, demonstrate, develop, direct, discipline, drill,
   edify, elevate, emend, enhance, enlighten, enrich, explain, fatten,
   favor, forward, foster, give instruction, give lessons in,
   go straight, ground, guide, illumine, improve, improve upon,
   inculcate, indoctrinate, inform, instruct, lard, lift,
   make an improvement, meliorate, mend, nurture, open the eyes,
   prepare, promote, raise, ready, rear, reeducate, refine upon,
   reform, school, set right, sharpen the wits, show, show how,
   socialize, straighten out, teach, teach a lesson,
   teach the rudiments, train, transfigure, transform, tutor, upgrade,
   uplift