Dictionary

write-in en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈɹaɪtˌɪn/

Etymology

Deverbal from write in. So called because anybody wishing to vote for such a candidate must explicitly write the candidate's name on the ballot.

Meanings

1. (attributive, often) A candidate whose name is not listed on the ballot.
   • He won a write-in campaign for Youngstown school board in 2015; he joined the Green Party last year. 2019 February 19, Jeremy Pelzer, “Youngstown School Board member Dario Hunter seeks Green Party presidential nomination”, in cleveland.com, archived from the original on 16 Apr 2019:
2. (attributive, often) A vote made for a candidate of this kind.
3. (attributive, often) A social event for authors, at which they meet up to work on their writing together.
   • I do not think podcasting helps sell books, except for perhaps some of my non-fiction, but that boost is very slight. It does direct listeners to my author services (retreats and weekly write-ins), so in that way, I see some profit from it. 2020 March 6, Joanna Penn, Audio For Authors: Audiobooks, Podcasting, And Voice Technologies, The Creative Penn, →ISBN:
   • If you have come to a point where you just don't know where to go next in the story, going to a write-in can be a huge help. 2017 August 13, HowExpert, Nicole Thomas, NaNoWriMo 101: A Quick Guide on How to Write a Novel in 30 Days During National Novel Writing Mont, HowExpert, →ISBN, page 22:
   • NaNoWriMo also provides free resources and curriculum globally to over 80,000 students and educators in 2,000 classrooms. In addition a host of volunteers provide write-ins and events in 500 regions. 2015 February 19, Roy Baldwin, Mauveine, Creative Gateway:
4. (attributive, derogatory, often, qualifier:crosswording) A clue or puzzle that is so easy that the answer is immediately obvious.
   • Normally, when the first clue is a write-in, I think I am in for an easy time, but not here: there is enough misdirection to keep most of us on our toes, and the bottom half remained nearly empty for far too long. 2019 July 9, PeterO, “Guardian Cryptic 27,868 by Pasquale”, in Fifteensquared:
   • Elsewhere there was a capital that crops up every now and then and which I never remember, and much that will have been a write-in for regular solvers. 2024 November 13, “i Cryptic Crossword 4297 by Tees”, in idothei:

Forms