Returned Letter Office
Preserved but no longer current.
See BLIND DEPART- MENT. Reveille (re vaT i) (Fr. reveiller, to awake). The signal by bugle or beat of drum, notifying soldiers that it is time to rise, and informing the sentries that they may forbear from chal- lenging.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Returned Letter Office” mean?
See BLIND DEPART- MENT. Reveille (re vaT i) (Fr. reveiller, to awake). The signal by bugle or beat of drum, notifying soldiers that it is time to rise, and informing the sentries that they may forbear from chal- lenging.
Is “Returned Letter Office” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.