illiterate.
Unable to read and write.
Meaning & usage
Unable to read and write.
About half of the population in Ethiopia is illiterate.
Having less than an expected standard of familiarity with language and literature, or having little formal education.
Not conforming to prescribed standards of speech or writing.
Ignorant in a specified way or about a specified subject.
Where this word comes from
First attested in 1425–1475, in Middle English; from Middle English illiterat(e) (“uneducated, ignorant of Latin”), borrowed from Latin illīterātus, illitterātus (“unlearned, ignorant”), itself from in- (“un-”) + līterātus, litterātus (“furnished with letters”) (see -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from lītera, littera (“letter, character”). The noun was derived from the adjective by substantivization, see -ate (noun-forming suffix).
An illiterate person, one either not able to read and write or not knowing how.
A person ignorant about a given subject. (The relevant subject is usually named as a noun adjunct.)
Their government is run by business illiterates.
Sometimes a mathematical illiterate is called an innumerate.
Where this word comes from
First attested in 1425–1475, in Middle English; from Middle English illiterat(e) (“uneducated, ignorant of Latin”), borrowed from Latin illīterātus, illitterātus (“unlearned, ignorant”), itself from in- (“un-”) + līterātus, litterātus (“furnished with letters”) (see -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from lītera, littera (“letter, character”). The noun was derived from the adjective by substantivization, see -ate (noun-forming suffix).
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.