literature

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   Written works such as novels, poems, and plays valued as art.

   He's studying English literature at university.

2. 2
   noun

   Written material on a particular subject.

   I read all the literature on the new medication.

3. 3
   noun

   The published research and articles in an academic field.

   There is little literature on this rare disease.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Literature dates from the late Middle English period and ultimately derives from Latin litera or littera, which meant both “letter of the alphabet” and “written communication or message.”

From Middle English literature, from Old French littérature, from Latin literatura or litteratura, from littera (“letter”), from Etruscan, from Ancient Greek διφθέρᾱ (diphthérā, “tablet”). Displaced native Old English bōccræft.

Topics

External links

• Google Images
• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary