A Writ Is a Written Command From a Court
A writ is a formal written order. The word is an old past participle of write.
A writ is a formal written order issued by a court or authority. The word is an archaic past participle of *write*, preserved in the phrase *writ large*, meaning written in larger form and so made more obvious. English once had many such participles — *holpen* for helped, *shapen* for shaped, *gotten* for got — most of which survive only in fixed phrases. The *writ of habeas corpus*, literally *you shall have the body*, orders a detained person to be brought before a court.
- A court order. *A writ of summons.*
- Written (archaic). *Writ large.*
- Holy Writ. *Holy Writ.*
- Habeas corpus. *A writ of habeas corpus.*
- Old English — *writ*. *The source.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | writ | A writ. |
| Plural | writs | Writs. |
| Verb | write | To write. |
| Phrase | writ large | Writ large. |
| Related | written | Written. |
- They served a writ.Law.
- Ambition writ large.Phrase.
- Holy Writ means scripture.Usage.
Old participles in fixed phrases
- Writ large — from writ, an old form of written
- Molten — an old participle of melt
- Cloven — from cleave, as in cloven hoof
- Drunken — surviving as an adjective
- Gotten — kept in American English, lost in British
Old English *writ*, a writing or document, from *writan*, to write.
What does writ large mean?
Written in larger letters, hence made more obvious or existing on a bigger scale.
What is habeas corpus?
A writ ordering that a detained person be brought before a court, literally meaning you shall have the body.