missive

noun

mis·​sive ˈmi-siv 

: a written communication : letter

wrote a lengthy missive to her father

Synonyms

• letter
• epistle

Examples of missive in a Sentence

She received yet another lengthy missive from her father.

the two old friends like to fire off missives filled with good-natured teasing and mock insults

Recent Examples on the Web

An eclectic mix of Web3-native headlines, from sales stats to upcoming events to brief artist shout outs, make this missive a must-read for any follower of the tokenized digital art community. —Ana María Caballero, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025

Deadline contacted Pearlman to ask why his LinkedIn missive was removed within hours of being published on Wednesday. —Jake Kanter, Deadline, 27 Aug. 2025

Kennealy and his team offered a written warning about diminishing shelter capacity to the incoming Healey administration in November 2022, though the missive did not carry any recommendations to curb demand. —Chris Van Buskirk, Boston Herald, 25 Aug. 2025

While blotting soldiers’ letters one day, Julia comes across a missive from Henry Beauchamp (Jeremy Irvine), a lieutenant on the Western Front. —Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 22 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle French lettre missive, literally, letter intended to be sent

First Known Use

circa 1553, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for missive

• derisive
• dismissive
• emissive
• permissive
• submissive
• transmissive

Kids Definition

missive

noun

mis·​sive ˈmis-iv 

: letter entry 1 sense 2, message