man of letters
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.
He was Scotland's last freelance man of letters, equally and happily at home between the covers of books and the pages of newspapers, able to turn his hand, it seemed, to any commission.
From BBC • Feb. 3, 2026
“Literature nowadays is a trade,” Milvain insists: Putting aside men of genius, who may succeed by mere cosmic force, your successful man of letters is your skillful tradesman.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 14, 2025
Mallon, a distinguished man of letters, moved to Manhattan at 32, holding a PhD from Harvard and a dissertation that became his acclaimed 1984 book, “A Book of One’s Own.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 1, 2025
In a climate that Mr. Snyder helped create, he billed himself as a businessman rather than as a man of letters.
From New York Times • Jun. 8, 2023
It was his misfortune to be involved in politics, for he was as thorough a man of letters as ever existed, and most of his failings were more or less incidental to that character.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 8 "Hudson River" to "Hurstmonceaux" by Various
From Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.
