- (n.) The class of writings distinguished for beauty of style or expression, as poetry, essays or history, in distinction from scientific treatises and works which contain positive knowledge; belles-lettres.
- (n.) Learning; acquaintance with letters or books.
- (n.) The occupation, profession or business of doing literary work.
- (n.) The collective body of literary productions, embracing the entire results of knowledge and fancy preserved in writing; also, the whole body of literary productions or writings upon a given subject or in reference to a particular science or branch of knowledge or of a given country or period; as, the literature of Biblical criticism; the literature of chemistry.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
| APA | Webster's. (2011). literature. Retrieved September 25, 2026, from http://smartdefine.org/literature/definitions/2028280 |
| Chicago | Webster's. 2011. "literature" http://smartdefine.org/literature/definitions/2028280 (accessed September 25, 2026). |
| Harvard | Webster's 2011, literature, Smart Define, viewed 25 September, 2026, <http://smartdefine.org/literature/definitions/2028280>. |
| MLA | Webster's. "literature" 27 May 2011. Web. 25 September 2026. <http://smartdefine.org/literature/definitions/2028280> |