illiterate
adjective
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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.
Examples of illiterate in a Sentence
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.
Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 19 June 2024
Some migrants don’t speak one of the languages the app supports, while other migrants are illiterate.
—Seung Min Kim and Rebecca Santana, The Christian Science Monitor, 13 June 2024
Opportunities for a productive and satisfying life rarely come to illiterate and innumerate 21st century youth.
—Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 9 Mar. 2024
Coming from illiterate parents, Woodson was largely self-taught in his education and didn’t begin high school until 20-years-old.
—Marina Johnson, The Courier-Journal, 5 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for illiterate 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'illiterate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near illiterate
Cite this Entry
“Illiterate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/illiterate. Accessed 27 Jun. 2024.
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illiterate
adjective
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