Scarlet Letter
Preserved but no longer current.
In the rigid Puritan regime of New England in the early days a scarlet "A," for "adulteress" used to be branded or sewn on a guilty woman's dress. The theme of Hawthorne's novel of this name (1850) is based on this custom.
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 “Scarlet Letter” mean?
In the rigid Puritan regime of New England in the early days a scarlet "A," for "adulteress" used to be branded or sewn on a guilty woman's dress. The theme of Hawthorne's novel of this name (1850) is based on this custom.
Is “Scarlet Letter” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.