literate

1 of 2

adjective

lit·​er·​ate ˈli-tə-rət 

 also  ˈli-trət

1

a

: educated, cultured

literate executives

b

: able to read and write

What percentage of the population is literate?

2

a

: versed in literature or creative writing : literary

literate novelists

b

: lucid, polished

a literate essay

c

: having knowledge or competence (see competent sense 2)

computer-literate

politically literate

literately adverb

literateness noun

literate

2 of 2

noun

1

: an educated person

2

: a person who can read and write

Synonyms

Adjective

• educated
• erudite
• knowledgeable
• learned
• lettered
• scholarly
• well-read

Examples of literate in a Sentence

Adjective

She is literate in both English and Spanish.

What percentage of the population is literate?

The job requires you to be computer literate.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

These entertaining performances would disseminate information about the gods to both literate and illiterate audiences all throughout China. —Michael Naparstek, The Conversation, 23 Sep. 2024

Logically literate people will know how to ask the right questions of their leaders, how to spot fallacies, and, crucially, how to make decisions that truly align with their values. —Vinay K. Chaudhri, Scientific American, 5 Sep. 2024

Noun

Senior managers need to lead the effort to become climate literate and to then enable all of their employees, especially aspiring and rising managers, to do the same. —Lynn Schenk alison Smart, Harvard Business Review, 4 Oct. 2024

Being data literate is not the same as being a data storyteller. —Expert Panel®, Forbes, 23 Mar. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Adjective and Noun

Middle English literat, from Latin litteratus marked with letters, literate, from litterae letters, literature, from plural of littera

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

circa 1540, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

literate

1 of 2 adjective

lit·​er·​ate ˈlit-ə-rət 

ˈli-trət

1

: educated sense 1, cultured

2

: able to read and write

3

: having knowledge or experience in a particular area

computer literate

literately adverb

literateness noun

literate

2 of 2 noun

1

: an educated person

2

: a person who can read and write