erudition

[er-yoo-dish-uhn, er-oo-]

noun

1. knowledge acquired by study, research, etc.; learning; scholarship.

Other Word Forms

• eruditional adjective
• nonerudition noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of erudition¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin ērudītiōn- (stem of ērudītiō ) “an instruction.” See erudite, -ion

Synonym Study

See learning.

Example Sentences

David Souter stripped aside the well-maintained fiction that justices are appointed to the Court for their erudition, their intellect, their learnedness, and their reason.

From Salon

“So, we thought Justice Chandrachud would use his erudition and brilliant mind to do a lot of good for the citizens. But he has been disappointing,” she said.

From BBC

Solomon, not well-known today, was a Harvard-educated bon vivant known for his erudition in new art’s European history.

From Los Angeles Times

The language in these letters is just remarkable, it's two men in love with their own sense of erudition.

From Salon

While philosophers may opine about the recent solar eclipse with far more erudition than I, let me simply say that it’s doubtful we took the hint.

From Salon

Related Words

• refinement 

When To Use

What is erudition?

Erudition is knowledge obtained through study or research, as in Students gain erudition through reading and studying. Erudition is similar to such words as knowledge, learning, or scholarship. However, erudition is often used to mean that a person specifically acquired some kind of profound knowledge by extensively reading books, researching reports, or studying manuscripts. For this reason, erudition is typically used to refer to knowledge of topics such as theology or linguistics rather than math or physical sciences.Erudition comes from the adjective erudite, which describes something that is full of knowledge or that is scholarly.Example: The monk was known for his wisdom and erudition, having read every book in the monastery’s 1,000-year-old library.