literary

adjective

lit·​er·​ary ˈli-tə-ˌrer-ē 

1

a

: of, relating to, or having the characteristics of humane learning or literature

a literary education

a literary institution

b

: bookish sense 2

an essay written in a very literary style

c

: of or relating to books

a literary agent

a literary manuscript

2

a

: well-read

… he is literary, given to quoting to himself rather long stretches of remembered lines …

—F. J. Hoffman

b

: of or relating to authors or scholars or to their professions

her literary biographies

literarily

ˌli-tə-ˈrer-ə-lē 

adverb

literariness

ˈli-tə-ˌrer-ē-nəs 

noun

Synonyms of literary

• learned
• intellectual
• academic
• bookish
• scholastic
• erudite

Examples of literary in a Sentence

Do his books have any literary merit?

Mystery fiction is only one of many literary forms.

an essay written in a very literary style

The author uses many literary devices in his work.

He entered the literary world right out of college.

She hired a literary agent.

Recent Examples on the Web

His output more closely resembles that of an old studio film director’s than of a typical contemporary literary novelist, with certain themes and preoccupations reappearing across books of otherwise disparate subject matter. — Literary Hub, 1 Oct. 2026

Lowen is a literary equivalent of a governess, hired to take charge of a body of writing rather than the Crawfords’ only remaining child, Crew (Brady Wagner), whose twin sister drowned in an accident that kicked off the family’s tragedies. — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2026

Hence, Akhtar suggests, his use of autofictional and extra-literary devices. — David L. Ulin, Los Angeles Times, 30 Sep. 2026

As such, new original out of Denmark, Murder in the Dark, a four-part series from SAM Productions and Amazon MGM Studio based upon influential Danish literary icon Dan Turèll’s book series, is designed to appeal to a broad audience. — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 29 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1605, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing literary

• anti-literary
• literary agent
• literary executor
• pre-literary

Rhymes for literary

• accessary
• adversary
• ancillary
• apiary
• arbitrary
• aviary
• axillary
• bacillary
• beriberi
• bestiary
• breviary
• budgetary

Kids Definition

literary

adjective

lit·​er·​ary ˈlit-ə-ˌrer-ē 

1

a

: of or relating to literature

b

: bookish sense 2

2

: of or relating to writers or writing as a profession

literarily

ˌlit-ə-ˈrer-ə-lē

adverb

literariness

ˈlit-ə-ˌrer-ē-nəs

noun