polite letters
1polite — [pə līt′] adj. [L politus, pp. of polire, to POLISH] 1. having or showing culture or good taste; polished; cultured; refined [polite society, polite letters] 2. having or showing good manners; esp., courteous, considerate, tactful, etc. SYN.… …
2polite — adj. (politer, politest) 1 having good manners; courteous. 2 cultivated, cultured. 3 refined, elegant (polite letters). Derivatives: politely adv. politeness n. Etymology: L politus (as POLISH) …
3letters — Synonyms and related words: French literature, IPA, ITA, Initial Teaching Alphabet, International Phonetic Alphabet, Renaissance literature, account, alphabet, alphabetics, ancient literature, annals, belles lettres, bibliolatry, bibliomania,… …
4Samurai — For other uses, see Samurai (disambiguation). Samurai in armor, 1860s. Hand coloured photograph by Felice Beato …
5Thomas M'Crie the Elder — For his eldest son, of the same name, see Thomas M Crie the Younger.Thomas M Crie (November, 1772 August 5, 1835) was a Scottish historian, writer, and preacher born in the town of Dunse, Berwickshire in November 1772. He was the eldest of a… …
6literature — I (New American Roget s College Thesaurus) n. books, belles lettres, letters. See writing. II (Roget s IV) n. 1. [Artistic production in language] Syn. letters, lore, belles lettres, literary works, literary productions, writing, the humanities,… …
7Mary Delany — Portrait of Mary Delany by John Opie, 1782. Mary Delany (nee Granville) (14 May 1700 – 15 April 1788) was an English Bluestocking, artist, and letter writer; equally famous for her paper mosaicks and her lively correspondence …
8Arabic literature — Introduction the body of written works produced in the Arabic language. The tradition of Arabic literature stretches back some 16 centuries to unrecorded beginnings in the Arabian Peninsula. At certain points in the development of… …
9Spanish literature — Introduction the body of literary works produced in Spain. Such works fall into three major language divisions: Castilian, Catalan, and Galician. This article provides a brief historical account of each of these three literatures and… …
10belles-lettres — n. pl. [Fr.] Polite literature, elegant literature, polite letters, elegant letters, the humanities …
