Dear John
Americannoun
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a letter from a woman informing her boyfriend or fiancé that she is ending their relationship or informing her husband that she wants a divorce.
Nothing is worse for a soldier's morale than getting a Dear John.
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any letter terminating a relationship.
Etymology
Origin of Dear John
First recorded in 1940–45
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Maybe only on second reading do we realize that we’ve been reading a kind of Dear John letter to America.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 30, 2025
"Dear John" is like a handwritten personal note to Mayer.
From Salon • Sep. 17, 2023
Later that evening, he finally unearthed the bank’s Dear John letter: “Financial institutions have an obligation to know our customers and monitor transactions,” it said.
From New York Times • Apr. 8, 2023
He chose Dear John, sung by Eddi Reader but written by Kirsty MacColl about the end of her marriage.
From BBC • Jan. 22, 2022
I had been right about her writing him a Dear John letter, and it really messed him up.
From "Fallen Angels" by Walter Dean Myers
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
