nerd vs learner

nerd and learner both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
nerd	Yes	No	No	No
learner	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, learner is a hypernym of nerd; that is, learner is a word with a broader meaning than nerd:

nerd: an insignificant student who is ridiculed as being affected or boringly studious
learner: someone (especially a child) who learns (as from a teacher) or takes up knowledge or beliefs

Other hypernyms of nerd include assimilator, scholar, student.

nerd (noun)	learner (noun)
an insignificant student who is ridiculed as being affected or boringly studious	someone (especially a child) who learns (as from a teacher) or takes up knowledge or beliefs
an intelligent but single-minded expert in a particular technical field or profession	works for an expert to learn a trade