literati
Americanplural noun
singular
literatus-
people engaged in literary pursuits, especially professional writers.
The lounge at the Algonquin Hotel in New York City was a well-known haunt of the literati during the 1920s.
-
learned people and scholars considered as a class.
university literati in their ivory tower.
plural noun
Etymology
Origin of literati
First recorded in 1615–25; from Latin līterāti, litterāti “learned, liberally educated people,” noun use of plural of līterātus, litterātus; literate
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.
These days, the online literati despises Shriver as a matter of principle.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 31, 2026
On recent travels, she taught in Paris at a New York University summer school program, mingled with New York City’s glittery literati and gave readings around the world.
From New York Times • Apr. 8, 2024
In the world of literature, for example, authors who are “othered” outside of the elite literati typically are boxed into othering themselves just to parlay their creativity into a career.
From Seattle Times • Jun. 24, 2023
Unlike, for example, the 1983 list, which now looks like a defining picture of the London literati, the judges believe the 2023 list is more representative of British society as a whole.
From BBC • Apr. 13, 2023
The Chinese literati had sought an immortality of integrity and intellect, a continuity of civilization without which mere physical survival might seem brutish.
From The Political Doctrines of Sun Yat-sen: An Exposition of the San Min Chu I by Linebarger, Paul Myron Anthony
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.
