chain letter

American  

noun

1. a letter sent to a number of people, each of whom is asked to make and mail copies to other people who are to do likewise, often used as a means of spreading a message or raising money.

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chain letter British  

noun

1. a letter, often with a request for and promise of money, that is sent to many people who add to or recopy it and send it on to others: illegal in many countries

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Etymology

Origin of chain letter

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

Start a chain letter, with those ominous threats at the end that tell people if they don’t write five more people, their lives will be in shambles.

From Scientific American

The message was spread via unsigned chain letters, bearing the slogan "Greenham women are everywhere" and their spider's web motif, symbolising the "fragile but resilient" network.

From BBC

The tension of this “frightening” thriller, inspired by “the era of poisonous chain letters” in 1970s Ireland, “builds whenever the mother and daughter appear,” our reviewer, Tina Jordan, noted.

From New York Times

The connective tissue of Facebook is rumor and urban legends, like old-fashioned chain letters, or email forwards, except these find their way to the president’s addled mind and not just your grandparents’ shared inbox.

From Washington Post

"He once circulated a chain letter denouncing Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas as a race traitor."

From Fox News