literate

[ lit-er-it ]

/ ˈlɪt ər ɪt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR literate ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

able to read and write.

having or showing knowledge of literature, writing, etc.; literary; well-read.

characterized by skill, lucidity, polish, or the like: His writing is literate but cold and clinical.

having knowledge or skill in a specified field: Is she computer literate? The boss needs a computer‐literate assistant.

having an education; educated.

noun

a person who can read and write.

a learned person.

Nearby words

literalize, literally, literary, literary agent, literary executor, literate, literati, literatim, literation, literator, literature

Origin of literate

1400–50; late Middle English < Latin līterātus, litterātus learned, scholarly. See letter¹, -ate¹

SYNONYMS FOR literate

3, 5 well-informed, knowledgeable.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR literate ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

lit·er·ate·ly, adverban·ti·lit·er·ate, adjective, nounan·ti·lit·er·ate·ly, adverbun·lit·er·ate, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for literate

Pointing out that Nick Denton writes and speaks like a literate adult and not like a 14-year-old in remedial English.
Rage Against GamerGate’s Hate Machine: What I Got For Speaking Up|Arthur Chu|November 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
That would be fascism—but the “eloquent” and literate cadena is freedom.
The Stupidest Hugo Chávez Hagiographies From the Yanquis Who Loved Him|Michael Moynihan|March 7, 2013|DAILY BEAST
But only the literate imagination can bring them back to life.
Writing For Teens Vs. Adults: Rowling As Case Study|Seth Lerer|October 3, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Her humor was New York humor, layered and tangy with irony; chewy and Jewish and deadpan and literate.
Remembering Nora Ephron as Our Dorothy Parker, but More|Stephen Schiff|June 27, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Only 13 percent of women are literate (compared with almost 33 percent of men).
Afghan Women Fear Backsliding As President Karzai Negotiates With Taliban|Magsie Hamilton-Little|February 19, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Such of them as were literate enough to send in their votes were almost unanimously against a change.
The American Language|Henry L. Mencken
And only the other day a literate man from Saratoff called on me who had evidently gone out of his mind over this very question.
The Kingdom of God is Within You, What is Art|Lyof N. Tolstoi
Literacy, as a socially encompassing ideal, states that people should be literate because people think in language.
The Civilization of Illiteracy|Mihai Nadin
Literacy forces certain assumptions upon us: Literate parents educate literate children.
The Civilization of Illiteracy|Mihai Nadin
Pink-faced, lightly wrinkled, Joe could shift at will from a glorified valet to a literate old man.
The Trial of Callista Blake|Edgar Pangborn

British Dictionary definitions for literate

literate

/ (ˈlɪtərɪt) /

adjective

able to read and write

educated; learned

used to words rather than numbers as a means of expressionCompare numerate

noun

a literate person

Derived Forms

literately, adverb

Word Origin for literate

C15: from Latin litterātus learned. See letter

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012