open letter

noun

: a published letter of protest or appeal usually addressed to an individual but intended for the general public

Examples of open letter in a Sentence

In an open letter to the company, a citizens' group implored company executives to reconsider their decision to close the factory.

Recent Examples on the Web

Film Workers for Palestine published the pledge — which invokes the work of Filmmakers United Against Apartheid, the 1980s initiative co-founded by Jonathan Demme and Martin Scorsese in response to apartheid in South Africa — in a September 8 open letter with more than 1,000 initial signatories. —Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 9 Sep. 2025

The pledge was made public this morning with an open letter posted on Instagram. —Zac Ntim, Deadline, 8 Sep. 2025

Last week more than 1,000 current and former HHS employees signed an open letter calling for Kennedy to resign. —Kate Plummer, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025

Hanks also joined a group of prominent Greek-Americans in signing an open letter in support of Harris' presidential bid in October 2024, per The National Herald. —Kimberlee Speakman, PEOPLE, 6 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1898, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for open letter

• carburetter
• carburettor
• abettor
• newsletter
• typesetter
• better
• bettor
• debtor
• fetter
• getter
• netter
• petar

Kids Definition

open letter

noun

: a letter (as one addressed to an official) for the public to see and printed in a newspaper or magazine