literary
Americanadjective
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pertaining to or of the nature of books and writings, especially those classed as literature.
literary history.
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pertaining to authorship.
literary style.
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versed in or acquainted with literature; well-read.
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engaged in or having the profession of literature or writing.
a literary man.
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characterized by an excessive or affected display of learning; stilted; pedantic.
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preferring books to actual experience; bookish.
adjective
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of, relating to, concerned with, or characteristic of literature or scholarly writing
a literary discussion
a literary style
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versed in or knowledgeable about literature
a literary man
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(of a word) formal; not colloquial
Usage
In this dictionary, the label Literary is assigned to an entry term or definition that is used rarely in contemporary speech or writing except to create a literary, poetic, or evocative effect.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of literary
1640–50; < Latin līterārius, litterārius of reading and writing. See letter 1, -ary
Explanation
Use literary when you want to indicate writing with high artistic qualities. Something doesn't have to be "literature" to be literary, but they are related. Literary comes from the Latin litterarius, meaning "letters," as in letters of the alphabet. Think of literary writing as writing that explores the richness of language or even contributes to it, especially in a high cultural way. The clever rhymes you invented about your grade school principal's bathing habits made your classmates laugh, but that doesn't make them great literary achievements.
Vocabulary lists containing literary
TEKS ELAR Academic Vocabulary List (5th-7th grades)
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National Librarian Day
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Writing - Middle School
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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.
Take the historical literary fiction novel “Perfume: The Story of a Murderer” by Patrick Süskind, for example, set in the 18th century.
From Los Angeles Times • May 4, 2026
Fairhope attracts retirees because of its literary charms and mild winters, so several of the protesters who testified as witnesses in the trial were from outside the South.
From Slate • May 4, 2026
Platitudes are for popsicle sticks and fortune cookies, not feature-length adaptations of literary classics intended to warn readers about how easily power can bleed into corruption.
From Salon • May 3, 2026
Sally was in her early 40s when her debut book was published, setting her on a path to sales of 2.5 million copies and major literary prizes such as the Carnegie Medal.
From BBC • May 1, 2026
You have found the first clue in Garrison Griswold's literary scavenger hunt launched on November 10.
From "Book Scavenger" by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman
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.
