Erudition is great learning gathered from books. Vast erudition, wear his erudition lightly, a display of erudition.
Wearing it lightly is the highest praise, since erudition on display is showing off. It names knowledge from reading rather than from experience, which is the distinction the word keeps.
1nouneruditionGreat learning gathered from books.
“His erudition was astonishing; he had read everything from ancient philosophy to modern science.”
erudition is a learning.
Latin eruditio comes from erudire, to instruct, from ex plus rudis, unpolished.
Latin
eruditio — an instructing, learning, erudition
Middle French
érudition
English, today
erudition
Built from
15th Century. From Middle French érudition, from Latin eruditio (“an instructing, learning, erudition”), from erudire (“to instruct, educate, cultivate”) literally “free from rudeness”, from e (“out”) + rudis (“rude”). by surface analysis, erudite + -ion.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA