functional illiterate

American  

noun

1. a person with some basic education who still falls short of a minimum standard of literacy or whose reading and writing skills are inadequate to everyday needs.

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functional illiterate British  

noun

1. a person whose literacy is insufficient for most work and normal daily situations

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Other Word Forms

• functional illiteracy noun
• functionally illiterate adjective

Etymology

Origin of functional illiterate

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

Bonjean described Kelly as a flawed genius who has been functional illiterate since childhood and was ill-equipped to navigate his celebrity and expanding wealth.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 13, 2022

One out of ten adult Americans sees most printed words as mere squiggly lines, and is, to U.S. census takers, a "functional illiterate."

From Time Magazine Archive

His defense team further argues that Davis couldn't have penned the jailhouse confession because in 1979 he was illiterate, a claim buttressed by a 1975 doctor's report that labels him a functional illiterate.

From Time Magazine Archive

She points out that a student can be graduated in the top third of a New York City high school class and be a functional illiterate.

From Time Magazine Archive