preliterate

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Keller’s comparison between a ship lost in the fog and her preliterate life provides insight into her mental state.

From Textbooks • Dec. 21, 2021

Myths themselves commonly embody the religious beliefs of ancient or preliterate peoples, but Philip Ball suggests that we are still generating them.

From Washington Post • Aug. 18, 2021

But it seems similarly poised to tear through the preliterate set like a baby sharknado.

From Slate • Nov. 5, 2019

The most puzzling part of the whole civilisation-to-the-rescue proposal is that whenever modern-day explorers have encountered preliterate people, the violent ones have invariably been the explorers.

From The Guardian • Mar. 12, 2019

How can we ever hope to wrest the answers to those questions from Africa’s preliterate past, lacking the written evidence that teaches us about the spread of the Roman Empire?

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond