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We cannot afford to have any large section of the business world in doubt whether they have broken the laws or not, and we cannot let the laws become a dead letter through vagueness. In this view it is clear that an administrative commission can render invaluable service.
John Bates Clark

Meaning of "dead letter" in the English dictionary

Dictionary
DICTIONARY
section

PRONUNCIATION OF DEAD LETTER

dead letter play
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GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF DEAD LETTER

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
Dead letter is a noun.
A noun is a type of word the meaning of which determines reality. Nouns provide the names for all things: people, objects, sensations, feelings, etc.

WHAT DOES DEAD LETTER MEAN IN ENGLISH?

dead letter

Dead letter mail

Dead letter mail or undeliverable mail is mail that cannot be delivered to the addressee or returned to the sender. This is usually due to lack of compliance with postal regulations, an incomplete address and return address, or the inability to forward the mail when both correspondents move before the letter can be delivered. Largely based on the British model that emerged in the late eighteenth century, many countries developed similar systems for processing undeliverable mail. The term 'dead mail' is perhaps a misnomer, and several jurisdictions have opted for the use of the term 'undeliverable mail' as more clearly representing the status of the item whose transmission has been impeded. Being internal departments within postal administrations, little information about the dead letter office function has ever been made public. A few journal articles and at least one recently published book dealing with this topic have appeared. Classification as a dead letter is one of the few instances where postal personnel are allowed to violate secrecy of correspondence, ostensibly to search for clues as to the letter's origin or destination.

Definition of dead letter in the English dictionary

The first definition of dead letter in the dictionary is a letter that cannot be delivered or returned because it lacks adequate directions. Other definition of dead letter is a law or ordinance that is no longer enforced but has not been formally repealed. Dead letter is also anything considered no longer worthy of consideration.

WORDS THAT BEGIN LIKE DEAD LETTER

dead duck
dead end
dead fingers
dead from the neck up
dead hand
Dead Heart
dead heat
dead in the water
dead key
dead leg
dead letter box
dead letter drop
dead load
dead loss
dead man walking
dead man´s fingers
dead man´s handle
dead man´s pedal
dead march
dead marine

WORDS THAT END LIKE DEAD LETTER

better
cover letter
for that matter
for the better
getter
go one better
had better
letter
love letter
netter
newsletter
open letter
petter
setter
the better
the letter
to the letter
trendsetter
vetter
wetter
with a capital letter

Synonyms and antonyms of dead letter in the English dictionary of synonyms

SYNONYMS

Translation of «dead letter» into 25 languages

TRANSLATOR
online translator

TRANSLATION OF DEAD LETTER

Find out the translation of dead letter to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.
The translations of dead letter from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «dead letter» in English.

Translator English - Chinese

一纸空文
1,325 millions of speakers

Translator English - Spanish

letra muerta
570 millions of speakers

English

dead letter
510 millions of speakers

Translator English - Hindi

मृत पत्र
380 millions of speakers
ar

Translator English - Arabic

حبرا على ورق
280 millions of speakers

Translator English - Russian

бумаге
278 millions of speakers

Translator English - Portuguese

letra morta
270 millions of speakers

Translator English - Bengali

মৃত চিঠি
260 millions of speakers

Translator English - French

lettre morte
220 millions of speakers

Translator English - Malay

Surat mati
190 millions of speakers

Translator English - German

toter Buchstabe
180 millions of speakers

Translator English - Japanese

空文
130 millions of speakers

Translator English - Korean

죽은 편지
85 millions of speakers

Translator English - Javanese

Mati huruf
85 millions of speakers
vi

Translator English - Vietnamese

thư không ai nhận
80 millions of speakers

Translator English - Tamil

இறந்த கடிதம்
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Marathi

मृत पत्र
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Turkish

Ölü mektup
70 millions of speakers

Translator English - Italian

lettera morta
65 millions of speakers

Translator English - Polish

martwą literą
50 millions of speakers

Translator English - Ukrainian

папері
40 millions of speakers

Translator English - Romanian

literă moartă
30 millions of speakers
el

Translator English - Greek

νεκρό γράμμα
15 millions of speakers
af

Translator English - Afrikaans

dooie letter
14 millions of speakers
sv

Translator English - Swedish

tomma ord
10 millions of speakers
no

Translator English - Norwegian

døde brev
5 millions of speakers

Trends of use of dead letter

TRENDS

TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «DEAD LETTER»

The term «dead letter» is normally little used and occupies the 112.646 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.
0
100%
FREQUENCY
Little used
48
/100
The map shown above gives the frequency of use of the term «dead letter» in the different countries.
Principal search tendencies and common uses of dead letter
List of principal searches undertaken by users to access our English online dictionary and most widely used expressions with the word «dead letter».

FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «DEAD LETTER» OVER TIME

The graph expresses the annual evolution of the frequency of use of the word «dead letter» during the past 500 years. Its implementation is based on analysing how often the term «dead letter» appears in digitalised printed sources in English between the year 1500 and the present day.

Examples of use in the English literature, quotes and news about dead letter

EXAMPLES

2 QUOTES WITH «DEAD LETTER»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word dead letter.
1
John Bates Clark
We cannot afford to have any large section of the business world in doubt whether they have broken the laws or not, and we cannot let the laws become a dead letter through vagueness. In this view it is clear that an administrative commission can render invaluable service.
2
Sebastian Franck
To substitute Scripture for the self-revealing Spirit is to put the dead letter in the place of the living Word.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «DEAD LETTER»

Discover the use of dead letter in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to dead letter and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.
1
Dead Letter Drop
Now reissued with a brand new introduction by Peter James, Dead Letter Drop is Peter James' first ever novel, originally published in 1981.
Peter James, 2014
2
Post-Apocalypse Dead Letter Office
This is his first novel.
Nathan Poell, 2011
3
Dead Letter
When Herculeah discovers a mysterious letter inside the lining of a secondhand coat, she suspects it's a desperate cry for help.
Betsy Byars, 2006
4
Dead Letter House
This upbeat story spins into the surreal as the narrator begins to near East Kilbride. Is the main character dead? Tripping? A ghost? A grimly humoured story that ends poignantly.
Drew Campbell, 2013
5
The Dead Letter and The Figure Eight
Times may have changed since these books were first published, but good reading never goes out of fashion."--Dean James, coauthor of "By a Woman's Hand: A Guide to Mystery Fiction by Women "and manager of Murder by the Book (Houston, Texas)
Metta Fuller Victor, 2003
6
Dead Letter Day
Melina Markowitz, messenger for the underworld, delivers the goods for the supernatural beings in our midst—no questions asked.
Eileen Rendahl, 2013
7
Dead Letter
A humorous crime adventure series by the author of The Destroyer. In DEAD LETTER, Digger’s boss’s daughter is the next name on a college chain letter that has led to a string of murders—and her daddy is afraid she’ll be next.
Warren Murphy, 2014
8
Dead Letter
The professor was an eccentric old bird, and his daughter was a delicate flower.
Jonathan Valin, 2012
9
Dead Letter Office
Abandoning all, he packs his suitcase and takes a final trip around the world as a young single man. From bulb picking in Holland, digging holes in London to mail assortment in New York. This is quite simply the tale of an Irishman abroad.
Damian McCusker, 2006
10
Dead Letter Office
Kristen Lindemoen spent ten years in Los Angeles as a special education teacher. Currently she lives in Arizona, sharing her home with three delinquent cats and one incorrigible tortoise. Dead Letter Office is Kristen's first book.
Kristen Lindemoen, 2013

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «DEAD LETTER»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term dead letter is used in the context of the following news items.
1
Outdoors: Reminder for doe license sales
Never too early as to risk wasting away in the “dead letter” file. Never so late as to arrive a day or two late. To be fair, we never took advantage ... «The Sentinel, Jul 15»
2
Top gigs in Sydney: Danny Elfman, Jarryd James, #1 Dads, Dead
There is a lot of expectation from fans eagerly awaiting the third record from Brisbane rockers Dead Letter Circus, making first single While You ... «Sydney Morning Herald, Jul 15»
3
The Spirit of '76
... enshrined in the Declaration of Independence shows that this document is no dead letter. As Jefferson wrote in the missive published on July ... «Washington Free Beacon, Jul 15»
4
Democrats underestimate Scott Walker at their own peril
Tenure is a dead letter in cases of “financial emergency ... requiring program discontinuance, curtailment, modification or redirection.” So who ... «Burlington County Times, Jul 15»
5
Happy Independence Day
If the Progressive RINO Establishment had its way, constitutional conservatism would be a dead letter. The only reason it's not is because of ... «Canada Free Press, Jul 15»
6
America Was
... the battle flags of the combatants (should have used the Swedish flag), freedom of speech appears as much a dead letter as the Constitution. «American Spectator, Jul 15»
7
Cover-letter dishonesty by would-be leaders of schools?
When such submissions are received, upon review they should be dispatched to the dead letter file, the circular one in the corner, post haste. «Montrose Daily Press, Jul 15»
8
Paterno Estate Accuses NCAA of Stalling Trial, Improper Court …
... denials and then simply take a mulligan, the rule that makes a general denial equivalent to an admission would be reduced to a dead letter.". «State College News, Jul 15»
9
Australia Indonesia Association promotes cultural friendship for 70 …
... member, the daughter of a well-known Theosophical Society family and a battle-axe granny who worked in the GPO's Dead Letter Office. «The Canberra Times, Jul 15»
10
Celebrate Liberty Month: America's great charter
Three months after it was written, Magna Carta was a dead letter. King John had revoked it, the barons had failed to enforce it, and England ... «Washington Times, Jul 15»

REFERENCE
« EDUCALINGO. Dead letter [online]. Available <https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/dead-letter>. Apr 2024 ».
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