illiteracy
Americannoun
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a lack of ability to read and write.
-
the state of being illiterate; lack of any or enough education.
-
a mistake in writing or speaking, felt to be characteristic of an illiterate or semiliterate person.
a letter that was full of illiteracies.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of illiteracy
First recorded in 1650–60; illiter(ate) + -acy
Explanation
Illiteracy is the inability to read. You can help someone overcome illiteracy by reading together, or even by sharing your knowledge of vocabulary. The word literacy means “the ability to read.” By adding the prefix il-, you change the meaning of the word to its opposite. Illiteracy can refer not only to the inability to read but also to a lack of knowledge in other subject areas. If you’ve never heard of Shakespeare, some people might consider you culturally illiterate.
Vocabulary lists containing illiteracy
A Raisin in the Sun
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The Kite Runner
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Workshop 1, Part 1
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
After confessing his illiteracy on TikTok, a fitness influencer discovered that his online audience was ready to help him learn to read.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 2, 2026
As a tribute to her father, who suffered all his life from illiteracy, she founded the Imagination Library, which provides free books to children from birth until the time they enter school.
From Salon • Jan. 19, 2026
She fears that the absence of this support, due to fear and lack of funds, could increase rates of illiteracy.
From BBC • Feb. 19, 2025
In a lesser-known history, the federal government helped bring public education to Southern white children, whose illiteracy rates prior to Reconstruction were five times as high as in the North.
From Slate • Feb. 6, 2025
But she was so witty and clever and warmhearted that she made of living a high joyous thing and in time he began to overlook her illiteracy.
From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
