Illiteracy

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Illiteracy \Il*lit"er*a*cy\, n.; pl. {Illiteracies}. [From
     {Illiterate}.]
     1. The state of being illiterate, or uneducated; lack of
        learning, or knowledge; ignorance; specifically, inability
        to read and write; as, the illiteracy shown by the last
        census.


        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. An instance of ignorance; a literary blunder.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              The many blunders and illiteracies of the first
              publishers of his [Shakespeare's] works. --Pope.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  illiteracy
       n 1: ignorance resulting from not reading
       2: an inability to read [syn: {analphabetism}] [ant: {literacy}]