writ
/ɹɪt/noun, verb
writ is spelled W-R-I-T: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 2.0 times per million words in written English, the 19,589th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, writ means “A written order, issued by a court, ordering someone to do (or stop doing) something” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of writ is writs.
How many letters and syllables are in writ?
| Letters | 4: W-R-I-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 2.0 times per million words; the 19,589th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is writ?
Writ appears 2.0 times per million words in written English, the 19,589th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce writ?
- /ɹɪt/
Writ has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vininn126-writ.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of writ
- writs plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does writ mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A written order, issued by a court, ordering someone to do (or stop doing) something.
- 2
AustraliaCanadaUKA document ordering that an election be conducted.
- 3
UKAn order issued by the House of Lords summoning peers to the Chamber.
- 4
Authority, power to enforce compliance.
- 5
archaicThat which is written; writing.
verb
- 1
datedsimple past of write
- 2
datedpast participle of write up
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Writ in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | ordonnance , écrit |
| German | Erlaß, Gerichtsurkunde, Verfügung, Zwangsbefehl |
| Portuguese | mandado , escrito |
| Spanish | decreto judicial, recurso, auto, requerimiento judicial, orden escrito, orden escripta |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does writ come from?
From Middle English writ, from Old English writ and ġewrit (“writing”), from Proto-Germanic *writą (“fissure, writing”), from Proto-Indo-European *wrey-, *wrī- (“to scratch, carve, ingrave”). Cognate with Scots writ (“writ, writing, handwriting”), Icelandic rit (“writing, writ, literary work, publication”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).