preliterate

Meanings

1. 1adjectivebefore a nountechnical

   Describing a society or culture that has no system of writing.

   Grammar: Used before a noun: a preliterate society. It is not usually used after a verb.

   Patterns

   • preliterate society
   • preliterate culture

   Anthropologists studied the preliterate society's oral traditions.

   In preliterate cultures, knowledge was passed down through stories and songs.

   The preliterate community had no written laws, only spoken customs.

2. 2adjectivebefore a nountechnical

   Relating to a time before the invention or use of writing.

   Grammar: Used before a noun: the preliterate period.

   Patterns

   • preliterate period
   • preliterate era

   The preliterate period of human history left no written records.

   Artifacts from the preliterate era tell us about daily life.

   During the preliterate stage, people relied on memory and speech.

Common combinations

preliterate society

A preliterate society maintains its history through oral storytelling.

preliterate culture

The preliterate culture used symbols but not a full writing system.

preliterate people

Preliterate people developed complex spoken languages.

Synonyms and how they differ

nonliterate

Nonliterate is a near-synonym but can also describe an individual who cannot read, while preliterate usually refers to a whole society without writing.

oral

Oral means spoken rather than written, and can apply to any culture; preliterate specifically means lacking writing altogether.

Opposites

Word family

literate adjective

Able to read and write.

literacy noun

The ability to read and write.

Commonly confused: preliterate or illiterate?

Practice

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