Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- adj. Able to read and write.
- adj. Knowledgeable or educated in a particular field or fields.
- adj. Familiar with literature; literary.
- adj. Well-written; polished: a literate essay.
- n. One who can read and write.
- n. A well-informed, educated person.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- Having a knowledge of letters; possessing education; instructed: opposed to illiterate.
- Of or pertaining to letters; learned; literary.
- Marked with short, angulated lines resembling letters: applied to the surfaces of shells and insects.
- n. A man of letters; a learned or literary man.
- n. An educated man who has not taken a university degree; especially, a candidate for holy orders who has not been educated at a university.
- n. One who can read and write: opposed to illiterate.
Wiktionary
- adj. Able to read and write; having literacy.
- adj. Knowledgeable in literature, writing; literary; well-read.
- n. A person who is able to read and write
GNU Webster's 1913
- adj. Instructed in learning, science, or literature; learned; lettered.
- n. One educated, but not having taken a university degree; especially, such a person who is prepared to take holy orders.
- n. A literary man.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a person who can read and write
- adj. knowledgeable and educated in one or several fields
- adj. versed in literature; dealing with literature
- adj. able to read and write
Etymologies
- Middle English litterate, from Latin litterātus, from littera, lītera, letter; see letter.
Examples
“When it is said: ˜Every literate being is necessarily a human being™, the subject is not something that can be said per se of the predicate, but since ˜literate being™ is not separated from what belongs to a human being in itself, the sentence is conceded as necessary, though when a sentence is necessary in this way it is necessary per accidens.”
“For although I do not deny that when all the experiments of all the arts shall have been collected and digested, and brought within one man's knowledge and judgment, the mere transferring of the experiments of one art to others may lead, by means of that experience which I term literate, to the discovery of many new things of service to the life and state of man, yet it is no great matter that can be hoped from that; but from the new light of axioms, which having been educed from those particulars by a certain method and rule, shall in their turn point out the way again to new particulars, greater things may be looked for.”
“Literacy (definition): Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary, literacy is \ "the quality or state of being literate" The term literate has (at least) two definitions: 1) able to read and write 2) Versed in literature or creative writing, having knowledge or competence in a specific field "" visual literacy\ "-" the ability to recognize and understand ideas conveyed through visible actions and images (as pictures) ”
“To be musically literate is a lifetime of exploration.”
“Being culturally literate is fine, but it gives you no pratical skills or training except perhaps to make you more charming.”
Cultural Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know « Books « Literacy News
“Russell - some of Carreiras's experiments were done in literate adults who'd learned to read as children (see fourth paragraph from bottom).”
“What keeps you literate is the ability to think through the problems.”
“According to E.D. Hirsch, Jr., to be culturally literate is to “possess the basic information needed to thrive in the modern world”.”
Cultural Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know « Books « Literacy News
“Getting kids literate is easy with this well-built program!”
Reading – Sing, Spell, Read & Write Phonics Part 1 « General Literacy « Videos « Literacy News
“But being literate is not the only way to learn things.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘literate’.
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Words related to knowledge
Words that relate to learning, knowing, being enlightened...
revelation, eureka, awakening, idea, sapient, astute, canny, intelligent, wise, sharp, shrewd, informed and 466 more...
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