Word of the Day

: August 12, 2007

erudite

adjective AIR-uh-dyte

What It Means

: possessing or displaying extensive knowledge acquired chiefly from books : learned

erudite in Context

The university hosted an informative lecture given by an erudite scholar of Cold War history.

Did You Know?

"Erudite" derives via Middle English "erudite" from Latin "eruditus," the past participle of the verb "erudire," meaning "to instruct." A closer look at that verb shows that it is formed by combining the prefix "e-," meaning "missing" or "absent," with the adjective "rudis," which means "rude" or "ignorant" and is also the source of our word "rude." We typically use the word "rude" to mean "discourteous" or "uncouth" but it can also mean "lacking refinement" or "uncivilized"; someone who is erudite, therefore, has been transformed from a roughened or uninformed state to a polished and knowledgeable one through a devotion to learning.