letter

letter
let|ter1 W1S1 [ˈletə US -ər] n
[Date: 1200-1300; : Old French; Origin: lettre, from Latin littera]
1.) a written or printed message that is usually put in an envelope and sent by mail
letter from/to
▪ I got a long letter from Melanie today.
▪ Bart's writing a letter to his parents.
post a letter
BrE /mail a letter AmE
▪ Could you post this letter for me?
a letter of thanks/introduction/complaint etc
▪ Julie received a letter of apology from the hospital.
▪ a business letter
→↑chain letter, ↑covering letter, ↑letter of credit, ↑open letter,thank-you letter at ↑thank-you
2.) a sign in writing or printing that represents a speech sound
▪ There are 26 letters in the English alphabet.
▪ Fill in the form in capital letters (=written in their large form) .
3.) to the letter
paying exact attention to the details of something
▪ I followed the instructions to the letter, but it still wouldn't work.
4.) the letter of the law
the exact words of a law or agreement rather than the intended or general meaning
▪ employees who stick to the letter of the law in their contracts
→the spirit of the law at ↑spirit1 (11)
5.) AmE a large cloth letter that you sew onto a jacket, given as a reward for playing in a school or college sports team
▪ Mark got a letter in soccer.
6.) English/American/German etc letters [plural] formal
the study of the literature of a particular country or language
▪ a major figure in English letters
letter 2
letter2 v
1.) [T usually passive]
to write, draw, paint etc letters or words on something
▪ The card was neatly lettered P.A. DUFFY.
letter sth in sth
▪ Several pages are lettered in gold.
2.) [i]AmE
to earn a ↑letter 1(5) in a sport
letter in
▪ He lettered in basketball at Brandeis.

Dictionary of contemporary English. 2013.

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Synonyms:
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Look at other dictionaries:

  • letter — let‧ter [ˈletə ǁ ər] noun [countable] 1. a written or printed message that is usually put in an envelope and sent by mail: • Please sign the letter and mail it back within two weeks. alloˈcation ˌletter also alˈlotment ˌletter FINANCE a letter… …   Financial and business terms

  • letter — let·ter n 1: a direct written statement addressed to an individual or organization; broadly: an official communication see also counterletter determination letter: a letter from an administrative agency (as the Internal Revenue Service) usu. in… …   Law dictionary

  • Letter — Let ter, n. [OE. lettre, F. lettre, OF. letre, fr. L. littera, litera, a letter; pl., an epistle, a writing, literature, fr. linere, litum, to besmear, to spread or rub over; because one of the earliest modes of writing was by graving the… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Letter — and similar can mean: *Letter (alphabet), a grapheme, part of an alphabet, abjad, abugida, or syllabary *Letter (message), correspondence, a written message *Letter (paper size), the letter size paper * Letters can also mean literature, as in… …   Wikipedia

  • letter — letter, epistle, missive, note, message, dispatch, report, memorandum are comparable when they mean a communication sent or transmitted as distinct from one conveyed directly from source to recipient (as by oral utterance). Letter is the ordinary …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • letter — letter1 [let′ər] n. [ME lettre < OFr < L littera, letter of the alphabet, (in pl.) a letter, epistle] 1. a written or printed symbol employed to represent a speech sound or sounds; character in an alphabet: in some languages, as English,… …   English World dictionary

  • letter — ► NOUN 1) a character representing one or more of the sounds used in speech; any of the symbols of an alphabet. 2) a written, typed, or printed communication, sent by post or messenger. 3) the precise terms of a statement or requirement. 4)… …   English terms dictionary

  • Letter — Sf erw. fach. (17. Jh.) Entlehnung. In Anlehnung an frz. lettre umgebildet aus älterem Litter, das in mittelhochdeutscher Zeit aus l. littera Buchstabe entlehnt ist (frz. lettre ist dessen lautgerechter Nachfolger). Die Herkunft des lateinischen… …   Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen sprache

  • letter — [n1] symbol of an alphabet ABCs*, alphabet, cap, capital, character, majuscule, minuscule, rune, sign, small letter, type, uncial; concept 284 Ant. number letter [n2] written communication acknowledgment, answer, billet, dispatch, epistle, junk… …   New thesaurus

  • letter — According to the Private Express Statutes, a message directed to a specific person or an address and recorded in or on a tangible object. Also a shortened way to refer to letter size mail …   Glossary of postal terms

  • Letter — Let ter, n. [From {Let} to hinder.] One who retards or hinders. [Archaic.] [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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