unlettered

[uhn-let-erd]

See more synonyms for unlettered on Thesaurus.com

adjective

not educated; uneducated; untutored; ignorant.
not literate; illiterate.
not marked with letters, as a tombstone.

Origin of unlettered

Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; see origin at un-¹, lettered

Synonyms

See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.com

1. See ignorant.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for unlettered

Contemporary Examples

In the novel, Newton takes up with a frumpy, unlettered Kentucky woman well into middle age.
‘The Man Who Fell to Earth’ Is a Classic Twice over—as a Movie and a Novel
Malcolm Jones
February 9, 2014
They were not designed via the epiphany of an unlettered Russian sergeant at a workbench, as fables would have it.
The Story of Saddam's Gun Collection
C.J. Chivers
October 28, 2010

Historical Examples

I wonder still at the unlettered condition of the boys about me.
In the Valley
Harold Frederic
I held him to be a shallow, unlettered clown, devoid of any finer feelings.
The Shame of Motley
Raphael Sabatini
Foreigners were things which in his untraveled, unlettered ignorance he despised.
The Lion's Skin
Rafael Sabatini
He was unlettered, had never opened a book, and seemed to know little of the ways of men.
The Arena
Various
His letters were the painful efforts of an unlettered mujik, as indeed he was.
The Minister of Evil
William Le Queux

British Dictionary definitions for unlettered

unlettered

adjective

uneducated; illiterate
not marked with lettersan unlettered tombstone

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

Word Origin and History for unlettered

adj.

mid-14c., "not possessed of book-learning," from un- (1) "not" + lettered (see letter (n.)). An anglicized form of illiterate. Cf. Middle Dutch ongelettert.

unlettered

Origin of .css-1fxfie5{font-size:22px;}@media (max-width:768px){.css-1fxfie5{font-size:18px;margin:0 10px 10px 0;word-break:break-all;word-wrap:break-word;-webkit-hyphens:auto;-moz-hyphens:auto;-ms-hyphens:auto;hyphens:auto;line-height:22px;}}unlettered

Synonyms

Related Words

Examples from the Web for unlettered

Contemporary Examples

In the novel, Newton takes up with a frumpy, unlettered Kentucky woman well into middle age.

They were not designed via the epiphany of an unlettered Russian sergeant at a workbench, as fables would have it.

Historical Examples

I wonder still at the unlettered condition of the boys about me.

I held him to be a shallow, unlettered clown, devoid of any finer feelings.

Foreigners were things which in his untraveled, unlettered ignorance he despised.

He was unlettered, had never opened a book, and seemed to know little of the ways of men.

His letters were the painful efforts of an unlettered mujik, as indeed he was.

unlettered

Word Origin and History for unlettered

adj.

Origin of unlettered