literate

/ˈlɪdərət/

/ˈlɪtərət/

Other forms: literates; literately

If you're literate you can read and write, and since you're reading this, that's what you are.

Literate can also mean more than just being able to read and write, but being really fluent in a field. If you're "computer literate," you know how to use a computer with ease. If you're up on the latest advances in science, you're "scientifically literate." If people describe you admiringly as literate, they think you're widely read and know a lot about lots of different fields. The opposite of literate is illiterate.

Definitions of literate

1. adjective

   able to read and write
   antonyms:

   illiterate

   not able to read or write

   uneducated

   having or showing little to no background in schooling

   analphabetic, unlettered

   having little acquaintance with writing

   functionally illiterate

   having reading and writing skills insufficient for ordinary practical needs

   preliterate

   not yet having acquired the ability to read and write

   semiliterate

   barely able to read and write

   semiliterate

   able to read but not to write
2. adjective

   versed in literature; dealing with literature
   synonyms:

   educated

   possessing an education (especially having more than average knowledge)

   belletristic

   written and regarded for aesthetic value rather than content

   literary

   knowledgeable about literature

   sophisticated

   having or appealing to those having worldly knowledge and refinement and savoir-faire

   antonyms:

   illiterate

   lacking culture, especially in language and literature
3. adjective

   knowledgeable and educated in one or several fields
   “computer literate”

   synonyms:

   educated

   possessing an education (especially having more than average knowledge)
4. noun

   a person who can read and write
   synonyms: literate person

   types:

   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

   decipherer

   a reader capable of reading and interpreting illegible or obscure text

   diarist, diary keeper, journalist

   someone who keeps a diary or journal

   map-reader

   a person who can read maps

   scrawler, scribbler

   a writer whose handwriting is careless and hard to read

   skimmer

   a rapid superficial reader

   good speller, poor speller, speller

   someone who spells words

   transcriber

   someone who makes a written version of spoken material

   transcriber

   someone who rewrites in a different script

   type of:

   individual, mortal, person, somebody, someone, soul

   a human being