literate
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Related to literate: Literate programming
lit·er·ate
(lĭt′ər-ĭt)adj.
1.
a. Able to read and write.
b. Knowledgeable or educated in a particular field or fields.
2. Familiar with literature; literary.
3. Well-written; polished: a literate essay.
n.
1. A person who is literate.
2. (used with a pl. verb) People who are literate, considered as a group.
lit′er·ate·ly adv.
lit′er·ate·ness n.
Usage Note: For most of its long history in English, literate has meant only "familiar with literature," or more generally, "well-educated, learned." Only since the late 1800s has it also come to refer to the basic ability to read and write. Its antonym illiterate has an equally broad range of meanings: an illiterate person may be incapable of reading a shopping list or uneducated in a particular field. The term functional illiterate is often used to describe a person who can read or write to some degree but below a minimum level required to function in even a limited social situation or job setting. An aliterate person, by contrast, is one who is capable of reading and writing but who has little interest in doing so, whether out of indifference to learning in general or from a preference for seeking information and entertainment by other means. The meanings of the words literacy and illiteracy have been extended from their original connection with reading and literature to any body of knowledge. For example, "geographic illiterates" cannot identify the countries on a map, and "computer illiterates" are unable to operate computers effectively.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
literate
(ˈlɪtərɪt)adj
1. able to read and write
2. educated; learned
3. used to words rather than numbers as a means of expression. Compare numerate
n
a literate person
[C15: from Latin litterātus learned. See letter]
ˈliterately adv
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
lit•er•ate
(ˈlɪt ər ɪt)adj.
1. able to read and write.
2. having or showing knowledge of literature, writing, etc.; literary; well-read.
3. characterized by skill, lucidity, or the like.
4. having knowledge or skill in a specified field: computer-literate.
5. having an education; educated.
n. 6. a person who can read and write.
7. a learned person.
[1400–50; late Middle English < Latin līterātus,litterātus learned]
lit′er•ate•ly, adv.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
literal
– literary – literate1. 'literal'
The literal meaning of a word is its most basic meaning.
She was older than I was, and not only in the literal sense.
The literal meaning of the Greek word hamartia, translated as sin, is 'missing the mark'.
2. 'literary'
Literary words and expressions are used to create a special effect in poems or novels, and are not usually used in ordinary speech or writing.
'Awaken' and 'waken' are old-fashioned or literary words.
Literary also means 'connected with literature'.
...literary critics.
...literary magazines.
3. 'literate'
A literate person is able to read and write.
Only half the children are literate.
Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Noun | 1. |  literate - a person who can read and write individual, mortal, person, somebody, someone, soul - a human being; "there was too much for one person to do" alphabetiser, alphabetizer - a literate person who can arrange items in alphabetical order reader - a person who can read; a literate person writer - a person who is able to write and has written something |
| Adj. | 1. | literate - able to read and write illiterate - not able to read or write |
| 2. | literate - versed in literature; dealing with literature educated - possessing an education (especially having more than average knowledge) sophisticated - having or appealing to those having worldly knowledge and refinement and savoir-faire; "sophisticated young socialites"; "a sophisticated audience"; "a sophisticated lifestyle"; "a sophisticated book" illiterate - lacking culture, especially in language and literature | |
| 3. | literate - knowledgeable and educated in one or several fields; "computer literate" educated - possessing an education (especially having more than average knowledge) |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
literate
adjective educated, lettered, learned, cultured, informed, scholarly, cultivated, knowledgeable, well-informed, erudite, well-read The lyrics are highly literate; they even quote Voltaire.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
literate
adjectiveHaving an education:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
مُلِم ، ذكي وكثير القِراءَه
gramotnýsečtělý
dannetkulitiveretuddannet
írni-olvasni tudó
bóklærîurlæs og skrifandi
raštingasraštingumas
izglītotslasīt un rakstīt protošsskolots
gramotný
kültürlüokumuşokur yazar
literate
[ˈlɪtərɪt] ADJ → que sabe leer y escribirhighly literate → culto
not very literate (fig) → poco culto, que tiene poca cultura
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
literate
[ˈlɪtərət] adj (= well-educated) → instruit(e)
the children of highly literate parents → les enfants de parents très instruits
the children of highly literate parents → les enfants de parents très instruits
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
literate
adj
to be literate → lesen und schreiben können; they aim to achieve a literate population in one generation → sie wollen die Bevölkerung in einer Generation alphabetisieren
(= well-educated) → gebildet; his style is not very literate → er schreibt einen ungeschliffenen Stil
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
literate
[ˈlɪtərɪt] adj → che sa leggere e scriverehighly literate → molto colto/a, molto istruito/a
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
literate
(ˈlitərət) adjective1. able to read and write.
2. clever and having read a great deal.
ˈliteracy nounKernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.