letter

¹ American  

[let-er] / ˈlɛt ər /

noun

1. a written or printed communication addressed to a person or organization and usually transmitted by mail.

2. a symbol or character that is conventionally used in writing and printing to represent a speech sound and that is part of an alphabet.

3. a piece of printing type bearing such a symbol or character.

4. a particular style of type.

5. such types collectively.

6. Often letters a formal document granting a right or privilege.

7. actual terms or wording; literal meaning, as distinct from implied meaning or intent (opposed to spirit).

   the letter of the law.

8. (used with a singular or plural verb) letters,

   1. literature in general.

   2. the profession of literature.

   3. learning; knowledge, especially of literature.

9. an emblem consisting of the initial or monogram of a school, awarded to a student for extracurricular activity, especially in athletics.

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verb (used with object)

• letters,
  present (3rd person singular)
• lettered,
  past participle,  past
• lettering
  present participle

1. to mark or write with letters; inscribe.

   I picked up the crossword and lettered in P-E-A-R-L for the final clue.

verb (used without object)

• letters,
  present (3rd person singular)
• lettered,
  past participle,  past
• lettering
  present participle

1. to earn a letter in an interscholastic or intercollegiate activity, especially a sport.

   He lettered in track at Harvard.

idioms

1. to the letter, to the last particular; precisely.

   His orders were carried out to the letter.

letter ² American  

[let-er] / ˈlɛt ər /

noun

Chiefly British.

1. a person who lets, especially one who rents out property.

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letter British  

/ ˈlɛtə /

noun

1. any of a set of conventional symbols used in writing or printing a language, each symbol being associated with a group of phonetic values in the language; character of the alphabet

2. a written or printed communication addressed to a person, company, etc, usually sent by post in an envelope

3. the strict legalistic or pedantic interpretation of the meaning of an agreement, document, etc; exact wording as distinct from actual intention (esp in the phrase the letter of the law ) Compare spirit 1

4. archaic printing a style of typeface

   a fancy letter

5. 1. following the literal interpretation or wording exactly

   2. attending to every detail

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verb

1. to write or mark letters on (a sign, etc), esp by hand

2. (tr) to set down or print using letters

letter More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing letter

• bread and butter letter
• crank call (letter)
• dead letter
• four-letter word
• poison-pen letter
• red-letter day
• to the letter

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Synonym Usage

See literature.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• letterer
  noun
• letterless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• lettering
  present
• lettered
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• letter
  simple
• letters
  simple
• have lettered
  perfect
• has lettered
  perfect
• am lettering
  progressive
• are lettering
  progressive
• is lettering
  progressive
• have been lettering
  perfect progressive
• has been lettering
  perfect progressive

Past

• lettered
  simple
• had lettered
  perfect
• was lettering
  progressive
• were lettering
  progressive
• had been lettering
  perfect progressive

Future

• will letter
  simple
• will have lettered
  perfect
• will be lettering
  progressive
• will have been lettering
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of letter¹

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English, variant of lettre, from Old French, from Latin littera “alphabetic character”; in plural, “epistle, literature”

Origin of letter²

First recorded in 1550–60; let ¹ + -er ¹ ( def. )

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Explanation

A letter is one of the characters that make up the alphabet. When a child first learns to write, she often starts with the letters in her name. Then she can write a message, or letter, to her grandmother. The alphabet begins with the letters a, b, c, d. These are written as capital letters when they appear at the start of a sentence or a proper noun, such as a person's name. Another letter is the kind you write and send to someone through the mail. Letter comes from the Old French letre, "character, letter, or note," from the Latin littera, "letter of the alphabet," and also "a writing or document."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

letter letters lettered lettering

Bangladesh’s consul general in New York sent Palo Alto police a letter “expressing profound concern regarding the circumstances surrounding his death” and calling for “a comprehensive law enforcement investigation.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026

The warnings came as Iran's security chief Mohsen Rezaei disclosed on Saturday that he had received a letter from US Vice President JD Vance seeking to revive talks.

From Barron's ● Nov. 1, 2026

In an open letter, they said they had raised concerns two months ago that the Finals schedule conflicted with the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks games at State Farm Arena.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026

Wallace resigned from public office in October 2025 soon after she confessed in a letter to the Tahoe Daily Tribune that she had taken funds from the church.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2026

Someone had written a letter for her, and Father Harte had read it to us.

From "Nory Ryan’s Song" by Patricia Reilly Giff

All the information on the ballot is in English, she said, and the letters are small.

From Salon ● Oct. 31, 2026

“Said the Dead” is, among other things, Lucia’s biography, gleaned from letters, accounts of marriages, births and deaths, and reports of her pioneering work in psychiatry.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

Officials say international supply disruptions linked to the Iran war have compounded the problem, with banks struggling to honour letters of credit and some overseas suppliers demanding upfront payment.

From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026

A prominent proponent of her display was the phrase “land of immigrants” in large letters, adjacent to a collection of photos of the deceased.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 29, 2026

Throughout the spring of 1850, Greeley’s Weekly Tribune published a barrage of letters about mediumship and spirit communications.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

I took a pass on it and instead played on the frosh-soph basketball team and lettered in tennis.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026

"We have spoken with pupils in our schools and have also lettered parents for awareness."

From BBC ● Apr. 13, 2026

In high school, she lettered in three sports.

From New York Times ● Jan. 31, 2024

He lettered from 1963-65 on Kentucky’s varsity under Charlie Bradshaw after playing on the freshman squad and was a consensus first team All-America as a senior.

From Washington Times ● Oct. 30, 2023

Taped to the bottom was a hand lettered notice that said that the circus would be in town for two nights only, on the grounds of the elementary school.

From "Homecoming" by Cynthia Voigt

In 2024, the firm shortened its identity to just “Freshfields,” dropped the angelic emblem in external communications and began using block lettering more synonymous with online startups and streetwear brands.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026

I can still picture the tram driver who patched together my grandmother’s clunker and the sign maker lettering Jesus’ words along the road.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

Mosaic tile lettering on the floors marking each apartment number is a recreation of the originals.

From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026

Accessorizing the lock box was a button with bold white lettering screaming at me to “PUSH FOR ASSISTANCE.”

From Salon ● May 22, 2026

I ran my hands over the raised lettering.

From "Amal Unbound" by Aisha Saeed

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