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
F. J. Hoffman
b
: of or relating to authors or scholars or to their professions
her literary biographies
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
Her latest novel is another left turn, a work of literary horror set in Antarctica, in which a Black location scout for a production company making a film about the Shakleton expedition and then winds up stranded with a bunch of white people…and also something else.
—Drew Broussard
july 8, Literary Hub, 8 July 2025
On Tuesday, July 8, PEOPLE can exclusively debut the trailer for the new documentary Kerouac's Road: The Beat of a Nation, which examines the life and work of 20th-century literary icon Kerouac and the impact of his his 1957 novel On The Road.
—Tommy McArdle, People.com, 8 July 2025
To do that, he’s reached back to the Superman of the literary medium’s beloved Silver Age.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 8 July 2025
James by Percival Everett Percival Everett earned top literary prizes including the Pulitzer and the National Book Award for this 2024 bestseller.
—Mia Barzilay Freund, Vogue, 7 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for literary
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Drew Broussard
july 8, Literary Hub, 8 July 2025
On Tuesday, July 8, PEOPLE can exclusively debut the trailer for the new documentary Kerouac's Road: The Beat of a Nation, which examines the life and work of 20th-century literary icon Kerouac and the impact of his his 1957 novel On The Road.
—Tommy McArdle, People.com, 8 July 2025
To do that, he’s reached back to the Superman of the literary medium’s beloved Silver Age.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 8 July 2025
James by Percival Everett Percival Everett earned top literary prizes including the Pulitzer and the National Book Award for this 2024 bestseller.
—Mia Barzilay Freund, Vogue, 7 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for literary
Cite this Entry
“Literary.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/literary. Accessed 15 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
literary
adjective
lit·er·ary
ˈlit-ə-ˌrer-ē
1
a
: of or relating to literature
b
2
: of or relating to writers or writing as a profession
literarily
adverb
ˌlit-ə-ˈrer-ə-lē
literariness
noun
ˈlit-ə-ˌrer-ē-nəs
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