| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| letter |
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| SYLLABICATION: | let·ter |
| PRONUNCIATION: |  l t  r |
| NOUN: | 1a. A written symbol or character representing a speech sound and being a component of an alphabet. b. A written symbol or character used in the graphemic representation of a word, such as the h in Thames. See Note at Thames. 2. A written or printed communication directed to a person or organization. 3. A certified document granting rights to its bearer. Often used in the plural. 4. Literal meaning: had to adhere to the letter of the law. 5. letters (used with a sing. verb) a. Literary culture; belles-lettres. b. Learning or knowledge, especially of literature. c. Literature or writing as a profession. 6. Printing a. A piece of type that prints a single character. b. A specific style of type. c. The characters in one style of type. 7. An emblem in the shape of the initial of a school awarded for outstanding performance, especially in varsity athletics. | | VERB: | Inflected forms: let·tered, let·ter·ing, let·ters
| | TRANSITIVE VERB: | 1. To write letters on. 2. To write in letters. | | INTRANSITIVE VERB: | 1. To write or form letters. 2. To earn a school letter, as for outstanding athletic achievement: She lettered in three collegiate sports. | | IDIOM: | to the letter To the last detail; exactly: followed instructions to the letter. | | ETYMOLOGY: | Middle English, from Old French lettre, from Latin littera, perhaps from Etruscan, from Greek diphther , hide, leather, writing surface. | | OTHER FORMS: | letter·er —NOUN
| | SYNONYMS: | letter, epistle, missive, note These nouns denote a written communication directed to another: received a letter of complaint; the Epistles of the New Testament; a missive of condolence; a thank-you note.
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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