littérateur

or lit·te·ra·teur

[ lit-er-uh-tur; French lee-tey-ra-tœr ]

noun

, plural lit·té·ra·teurs [lit-er-, uh, -, turz, lee-tey-, r, a, -, tœr].

1. a literary person, especially a writer of literary works.

littérateur

/ ˌlɪtərəˈtɜː; literatœr /

noun

1. an author, esp a professional writer

Word History and Origins

Origin of littérateur¹

From French, dating back to 1800–10; literator

Word History and Origins

Origin of littérateur¹

C19: from French from Latin litterātor a grammarian

Example Sentences

A “littérateur, physiologist and metaphysician,” as an obituary in The New York Times called him in 1878, Lewes is today most remembered as the longtime romantic partner and de facto agent of George Eliot: author of works consistently ranked among the best of Victorian literature — perhaps all of English literature.

From New York Times

Rose was, by all accounts, an unlikely littérateur: a rough-hewn Texan who, according to Jay Martin’s “Nathanael West: The Art of His Life,” “had not gone beyond the fourth grade and had not learned to read until he was wounded in World War I.”

From Los Angeles Times

Rose was, by all accounts an unlikely littérateur: a rough-hewn Texan who, according to Jay Martin’s “Nathanael West: The Art of His Life,” “had not gone beyond the fourth grade and had not learned to read until he was wounded in World War I.”

From Los Angeles Times

The book was first published anonymously, and its authorship is consequently uncertain, though usually attributed to a minor poet and litterateur named Wu Cheng’en.

From Washington Post

Among the key figures in her story are that sociable littérateur Sydney Cockerell and the high-rolling book dealers A.S.W.

From Washington Post

Related Words

• academic
• doctor
• intellectual
• philosopher
• professor
• scientist
• student
• teacher