Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

chain letter

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.47 in modern English

Syllables: chain let-ter
IPA

16

Scrabble Score

11

Letters

2

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A letter that can be mailed successively to different recipients, with each recipient ostensibly (but sometimes sarcastically) being instructed in the body of the letter to mail the letter to another person or persons.

Example Sentences

"By the second half of the 20th century, chain letters were ubiquitous enough to become a vector for scams, hoaxes, and viral lies. Chain pyramid schemes ran rampant through the U.S. mail system before they were made illegal in 1948."

Inflected Forms

chain letters (plural)

Phrases

chain mail

Frequently Paired Words

chain mail spam

Questions

What does chain letter mean?: A letter that can be mailed successively to different recipients, with each recipient ostensibly (but sometimes sarcastically) being instructed in the body of the letter to mail the letter to another person or persons.

How to pronounce chain letter

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “chain letter”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “chain letter”.
Repeat and practice — Say “chain letter” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.