Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

illiterati

American  
[ih-lit-uh-rah-tee, -rey-tahy] / ɪˌlɪt əˈrɑ ti, -ˈreɪ taɪ /

plural noun

Informal.

  1. illiterate or ignorant people.

Etymology

Origin of illiterati

1780–90; blend of illiterate and literati

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.

Moreover, kids are not quite the new illiterati that is widely supposed.

From Time Magazine Archive

We're good sports; we don't want to spoil The Perfect Storm for the illiterati.

From Time Magazine Archive

He is said to have collected his library by plundering those of the clergy of his diocese, justifying himself by the cynical remark, Quid illiterati cum libris?

From The Book-Hunter in London Historical and Other Studies of Collectors and Collecting by Roberts, W. (William)

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.