erudite
adjective
ˈer-yə-
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Erudite derives 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." (Rudis is also the source of the English word rude.) We typically use rude to mean "discourteous" or "uncouth" but it can also mean "lacking refinement" or "uncivilized." Taking these meanings into account, erudite stays true to its etymology: someone who is erudite has been transformed from a roughened or uninformed state to a polished and knowledgeable one through a devotion to learning.
Examples of erudite in a Sentence
Susan Sontag, New Yorker, 18 & 25 June 2001
… an engaging fellow: erudite, entertaining, intolerant of trendiness and fearlessly old-fashioned. … He can turn a nice phrase, too.
—Mordecai Richler, Wall Street Journal, 2 May 1995
He was well read, especially in the works of Kipling, a field in which Violet could give him a game, and from time to time they would exchange erudite letters about Kipling characters.
—Anthony Powell, The Strangers All are Gone, 1982
the most erudite people in medical research attended the conference
an erudite lecture on the latest discoveries in astronomy
Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 23 Oct. 2025
Hawke renders Hart as the most erudite barfly to buzz around mid-century Manhattan.
—Kyle McGovern, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Oct. 2025
Schattenfroh is extremely long and prodigiously learned, with scenes—and even sentences—that veer from one century to another, and with a taste for literary and art historical in-jokes that might try the patience of even the most erudite reader.
—Book Marks
september 11, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2025
Marty is an erudite man of letters who has long wanted to meet one of his favorite writers.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 4 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for erudite
Cite this Entry
“Erudite.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/erudite. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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