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Glite Dictionary
letters

letters

6.8
The world of books, writing, and study
  • noun
  • /ˈlɛtərz/
  • Literature
translation icon : literatura
  • She dedicated her life to the pursuit of letters, writing numerous books and essays.

Examples

  • Many great thinkers have contributed significantly to the field of letters.

  • Studying classical letters is essential for understanding ancient civilizations.

  • We write letters, we send letters and we receive letters.

Synonyms

writing
vsletters
206 1.1

How an author uses words and sentences in their texts

is about the wider intellectual world rather than just language style
literature
vsletters
196 3.9

Written works such as novels, poems, and plays that people value for art or ideas

covers the broader world of scholarship and intellectual written achievement

Compounds

man of letters
  • Literature
3 8.4

A man who studies and writes about books and literature

letters of administration
  • Formal
1 9.5

Court paper that lets someone manage a dead person's money and property when no one is named

letters of marque
  • Archaic
1 9.9

Official permission given by a government for private ship owners to capture enemy ships and goods

roman letters
  • Specialized
1 4.1

A style of letters with straight lines and simple shapes used in ancient Rome

capital letters
1.0

Large letters that start sentences and names

Doctor of Humane Letters
  • Specialized
8.9

An honorary university degree given for important work in literature or the humanities

letters patent
  • Formal
9.5

An official paper from a monarch or government that gives someone the only right to make something

letters testamentary
  • Specialized
9.9

An official court paper that lets a person carry out someone's will

How Scholarly

scientific research
  • Specialized
32 3.4
letters
  • Literature
6.8
writing
151 3.1
journalism
  • Literature
365 3.1

Surface Forms

letter singular
letters plural

Morphology

letters = letter (opaque) = letter + s

Although formed from 'letter' + plural '-s', the collective meaning 'letters' = 'literature, learning' is a semantic shift and not directly inferable by average learners from the everyday sense 'written message'.

Etymology

Letters comes from the Latin word littera meaning 'a written sign', and the Latin plural litterae was used for 'writing' or 'learning'. So letters now means the world of books, writing, and study, as you also see in the word literature.