literati

American  

[lit-uh-rah-tee] / ˌlɪt əˈrɑ ti /

plural noun

singular

literatus

1. people engaged in literary pursuits, especially professional writers.

   The lounge at the Algonquin Hotel in New York City was a well-known haunt of the literati during the 1920s.

2. learned people and scholars considered as a class.

   university literati in their ivory tower.

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literati British  

/ ˌlɪtəˈrɑːtiː /

plural noun

1. literary or scholarly people

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Etymology

Origin of literati

First recorded in 1615–25; from Latin līterāti, litterāti “learned, liberally educated people,” noun use of plural of līterātus, litterātus; literate

Example Sentences

The book—a masterpiece of the genre—chronicles the circuitous path he took from Brownsville, then a scrappy Jewish neighborhood, to the tony milieu of New York’s literati.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 17, 2025

In the world of literature, for example, authors who are “othered” outside of the elite literati typically are boxed into othering themselves just to parlay their creativity into a career.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 24, 2023

Unlike, for example, the 1983 list, which now looks like a defining picture of the London literati, the judges believe the 2023 list is more representative of British society as a whole.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2023

In a move that could cause certain members of the East Coast literati to lose their minds, the New York book scene is about to take up residence in Santa Monica.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 8, 2023

When Tolstoy began to write, the novel was already a tempered weapon against abuse, the skilful handling of it was a tradition among the literati, and there were masters to coach and encourage the beginner.

From The Critical Game by Macy, John Albert

Related Words

• department
• institute
• personnel
• staff
• university