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 telling someone how many shares they will receive when new shares are first made available;
= LETTER OF ALLOCATION:
• Qualifying members will get their allocation letters by early April.
a letter from an organization to someone to say that they have been given a job;
= LETTER OF APPOINTMENT:
• The appointment letter should include the appointee's job title and salary amount.
ˈcomfort ˌletter
• A parent company will give, if not a formal guarantee, then a comfort letter relating to its subsidiary's indebtedness to banks and others.
ˌcovering ˈletter , ˈcover ˌletter
a letter that you send with another document or a package, explaining why it has been sent or giving extra information about it:
• Copies of the questionnaire and covering letter were sent to heads of department individually.
a letter in which the conditions under which someone is employed are stated. In the US, an engagement letter is usually given to a
contractor who has been employed to carry out a particular service or job;
= LETTER OF ENGAGEMENT:
• The fee structure must be clearly set out in the engagement letter.
ˈform ˌletter
a standard letter that is sent to a number of people with just the name and address changed for each different person:
• We wrote to quite a large number of companies, but many sent back only form letters.
2. any of the signs in writing or printing that represent a speech sound:
3. do something to the letter to pay exact attention to the details of an agreement, rule, set of instructions etc:
• In order for the plan to work, you need to follow the instructions to the letter.
4. LAW the letter of the law the exact words of a law or agreement rather than the intended or general meaning:
• an administrator with a rigid adherence to the letter of the law
* * *
Ⅰ.
letter UK US /ˈletər/ noun [C]
► COMMUNICATIONS by letter »
You will receive an acknowledgement by letter.
get/receive a letter (from sb) »
I got a letter from my lawyer this morning.
deliver/post/send a letter »
I sent a letter about the problem to HQ last week.
draft/write/sign a letter »
The letter was signed by the managing director.
reply to/acknowledge/answer a letter »
I wrote to the company but they did not even acknowledge my letter.
a confirmation/rejection/warning letter »
You will receive a confirmation letter within 10 working days.
an accompanying/a covering letter »
Please find enclosed my CV and a covering letter.
a formal/an informal letter »
He wrote a formal letter of resignation.
»
The letter was addressed to John Clarke.
»
a letter dated 3rd March 2010
► »
the letter D
»
an upper-case/lower-case letter (= A/a or B/b)
→
See also ALLOCATION LETTER(
Cf. ↑
allocation letter),
APPLICATION LETTER(
Cf. ↑
application letter),
APPOINTMENT LETTER(
Cf. ↑
appointment letter),
BANK AUTHORIZATION LETTER(
Cf. ↑
bank authorization letter),
COMMITMENT LETTER(
Cf. ↑
commitment letter),
COVERING LETTER(
Cf. ↑
covering letter),
COVER LETTER(
Cf. ↑
cover letter),
CREDIT DISPUTE LETTER(
Cf. ↑
credit dispute letter),
ENGAGEMENT LETTER(
Cf. ↑
engagement letter),
FORM LETTER(
Cf. ↑
form letter),
LETTER OF COMFORT(
Cf. ↑
letter of comfort),
REGRET LETTER(
Cf. ↑
regret letter)
Ⅱ.
letter UK US /ˈletər/ adjective [before noun]
► US