illiterate

adjective

il·​lit·​er·​ate (ˌ)i(l)-ˈli-t(ə-)rət 

1

: having little or no education

especially : unable to read or write

an illiterate population

2

: showing or marked by a lack of acquaintance with the fundamentals of a particular field of knowledge

musically illiterate

3

a

: violating approved patterns of speaking or writing

b

: showing or marked by a lack of familiarity with language and literature

an illiterate magazine

illiterate noun

illiterately adverb

illiterateness noun

Did you know?

Illiterate, Aliterate, and Innumerate

Illiterate may be used in both specific and general senses. When used specifically, it refers to the inability to read or write. In a more general sense, illiterate may signify a lack of familiarity with some body of knowledge (as in being "musically illiterate") or indicate a lack of competence in or familiarity with literature.

Illiteracy may be contrasted with aliteracy, which is “the quality or state of being able to read but uninterested in doing so.” And in case you were wondering, a person who is unable to understand or perform basic mathematics, as opposed to reading, is innumerate.

Synonyms

• ungrammatical

Choose the Right Synonym for illiterate

ignorant, illiterate, unlettered, untutored, unlearned mean not having knowledge.

ignorant may imply a general condition or it may apply to lack of knowledge or awareness of a particular thing.

an ignorant fool

ignorant of nuclear physics

illiterate applies to either an absolute or a relative inability to read and write.

much of the population is still illiterate

unlettered implies ignorance of the knowledge gained by reading.

an allusion meaningless to the unlettered

untutored may imply lack of schooling in the arts and ways of civilization.

strange monuments built by an untutored people

unlearned suggests ignorance of advanced subjects.

poetry not for academics but for the unlearned masses

Examples of illiterate in a Sentence

Constantine is listed in the 1870 census as illiterate; 10 years later, he had learned to read and write. And when, in 1906, the local "colored school" was slated for destruction, Constantine arranged to save it by having it moved to this property. —Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Wall Street Journal, 1 Feb. 2006

Martin is not illiterate but I think close to it. I never saw him read a newspaper, for instance. —Hayden Carruth, Reluctantly, 1998

In a time when nearly everyone was illiterate, before newspapers, radio, and television, how could the religious and iconographic detail of these apparitions have been so similar? —Carl Sagan, The Demon-Haunted World, 1996

She didn't want anyone to know that she was illiterate.

She is politically illiterate and has never voted in an election.

He's illiterate when it comes to computers.

Recent Examples on the Web

The vast majority of the population was illiterate. —Karl Ove Knausgaard, New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2025

Assembly Bill 325 is economically illiterate nonsense that attempts to ban the use of pricing algorithms that help businesses determine prices. —The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 29 Sep. 2025

Because most people back in Roman times were illiterate and totally disconnected from the news of the World. —Nikki McCann Ramirez, Rolling Stone, 22 Sep. 2025

They were kept illiterate, by law. —Chadd Scott, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Latin illiteratus, from in- + litteratus literate

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing illiterate

• functional illiterate

Rhymes for illiterate

• literate

Kids Definition

illiterate

adjective

il·​lit·​er·​ate (ˈ)il-ˈ(l)it-ə-rət 

-ˈ(l)i-trət

1

: having little or no education

especially : unable to read or write

2

: showing lack of education

illiterate noun

illiterately adverb