Words / C1

i-LIT-uh-r-uh-t/ɪˈlɪtərət/

Illiterate means unable to read or write; also ignorant in a particular field: computer-illiterate, statistically illiterate. Literate sits opposite; a page with no n still fails audit.

Meaning

Unable to read or write; also ignorant in a particular field (computer-illiterate).

Examples

• “An illiterate methods page — no n, no frame — still fails audit.”
• “Uneducated is wider and ruder. Literate sits opposite. A page is a file. A frame is a list. Name the list; then decorate the prose.”

Good to know

Unable to read, or ignorant in a field. Opposite: literate. No n ≠ a methods page.

Near in meaning

unlettered

New