Dictionary
unlettered
adjective un·let·tered \ˌən-ˈle-tərd\
: unable to read or write
Full Definition of UNLETTERED
1
a : lacking facility in reading and writing and ignorant of the knowledge to be gained from books b : illiterate
2
: not marked with letters
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First Known Use of UNLETTERED
14th century
Related to UNLETTERED
- Synonyms
- analphabetic, benighted, dark, illiterate, nonliterate, rude, simple, uneducated, uninstructed, unlearned, ignorant, unread, unschooled, untaught, untutored
- Antonyms
- educated, knowledgeable, lettered, literate, schooled, well-informed, well-read
Synonym Discussion of UNLETTERED
ignorant, illiterate, unlettered, untutored, unlearned mean not having knowledge. ignorant may imply a general condition or it may apply to lack of knowledge or awareness of a particular thing <an ignorant fool> <ignorant of nuclear physics>. illiterate applies to either an absolute or a relative inability to read and write <much of the population is still illiterate>. unlettered implies ignorance of the knowledge gained by reading <an allusion meaningless to the unlettered>. untutored may imply lack of schooling in the arts and ways of civilization <strange monuments built by an untutored people>. unlearned suggests ignorance of advanced subjects <poetry not for academics but for the unlearned masses>.
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