illiterate
Americanadjective
-
unable to read and write.
an illiterate group.
-
having or demonstrating very little or no education.
-
showing lack of culture, especially in language and literature.
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displaying a marked lack of knowledge in a particular field.
He is musically illiterate.
noun
adjective
-
unable to read and write
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violating accepted standards in reading and writing
an illiterate scrawl
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uneducated, ignorant, or uncultured
scientifically illiterate
noun
Related Words
See ignorant.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of illiterate
First recorded in 1550–60, illiterate is from the Latin word illiterātus unlettered. See il- 2, literate
Explanation
You can describe a person unable to read or write as illiterate. Karaoke, which involves singing out the words to songs as they scroll across a big screen, requires the ability to read. If you’re illiterate, you won’t be able to participate. Illiterate, from the Latin illiteratus “unlearned, ignorant,” can describe someone unable to read or write, but it can also imply that a person lacks cultural awareness. However, Walt Whitman saw a unique beauty to illiteracy: “There is that indescribable freshness and unconsciousness about an illiterate person that humbles and mocks the power of the noblest expressive genius.”
Vocabulary lists containing illiterate
I Am Malala
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Freak the Mighty
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The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
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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.
“Without laborers,” she writes, “who were often illiterate and almost never speak for themselves in historical texts—there would have been no Mughal Empire.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 5, 2025
They want illiterate, groveling serfs, who live in fear and don’t stick around too long.
From Salon • Nov. 23, 2025
"Digital technology is an opportunity we cannot miss," she said, warning that "those who do not adapt risk becoming the illiterate of the 21st century".
From Barron's • Oct. 9, 2025
A high number of pupils at the secondary school are "functionally illiterate", meaning they have a reading age well below average when they start Year 7.
From BBC • May 21, 2025
Lembede, whose father was an illiterate Zulu peasant from Natal, had trained as a teacher at Adam’s College, an American Board of Missions institution.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
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.
