functional illiterate
noun [ C ]
education
mainly US specialized uk
/ˌfʌŋk.ʃən.əl ɪˈlɪt.ər.ət/ us
/ˌfʌŋk.ʃən.əl ɪˈlɪt̬.ɚ.ət/A high percentage of poor kids can emerge from the public system as functional illiterates.
- A person may be literate in their native language but still considered a functional illiterate if they cannot read and write the language of the country where they live.