Skip to main content
mail

mail

659 1.0
The service that sends and delivers letters and packages
  • noun
  • /meɪl/
translation icon : servicio postal
  • Stamp collecting has lost its luster as few people send letters in the mail anymore.
  • send by mail
  • mail service
  • deliver by mail

I think leftover from the Postal Service days when they started doing mail by plane.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • Then the IRS will send you the stimulus check via the mail instead.

  • The mail carrier delivers packages and letters every morning.

  • Yeah, they came in the mail Friday.

  • From now on you got to get your mail down there, okay?

  • You got some mail there, too.

  • Mine says Taylor on it because they sent this in the mail forever ago.

  • Teachers received the measures in the mail approximately one week prior to the scheduled data collection period.

    Academic text (2012)
  • Families returned the consent form and survey by mail or in person if they wished to participate.

    Academic text (2015)
  • Many countries have privatized their mail systems in whole or in part.

  • Consequently, we completed a mail survey of shark anglers in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.

    Academic text (1993)

Synonyms

post
vsmail
  • UK
204 1.0

Letters and packages that are delivered to people

is the national sending system term used in broader varieties
10 1.4

A system that sends and delivers letters and packages

is the general national sending system rather than the organisation name
snail mail
vsmail
  • Informal
7 3.4

Letters and packages that are sent and delivered by the postal service

is the official national sending system not limited to physical delivery
mail service
vsmail
1 1.0

An official system that sends letters and packages between places, often run by the government

is the national official system described more generally

Idioms

To do important work well when other people depend on you

A promise that payment is on the way but probably is not

Compounds

e-mail address
  • Texting
30 1.1

A special name people use to send and receive messages online

22 2.7

Letters or messages people send to a celebrity to show they like them

20 2.1

Buying things from a catalog and having them sent to your home

hate mail
  • Offensive
20 4.6

Mean or threatening messages sent to upset someone

16 2.1

Unwanted letters and ads sent to many people

15 3.2

A phone service that lets people leave messages and hear them later when no one answers

11 3.2

Printed ads sent by post to possible customers

mail fraud
  • Formal
9 5.5

Crime of using the mail to trick people into giving money or things

7 2.0

A person who delivers letters and packages to homes and businesses

snail mail
  • Informal
7 3.4

Letters and packages that are sent and delivered by the postal service

e-mail message
  • Texting
6 1.0

A message sent by email over the internet

electronic mail
  • Texting
5 2.8

A way to send messages and documents between computers over the Internet

5 2.8

A narrow opening in a door for putting letters and small packages through

4 8.6

A flexible shirt of small metal rings joined together for protection

2 3.2

Mail the post office records and sends with extra security and a signature on delivery

mail call
  • Jargon
2 6.1

A time when people hear their names and receive letters or packages

junk e-mail
  • Texting
2 2.5

Email sent to many people that contains unwanted ads

1 2.2

A fast mail service for letters and small packages that is delivered before other mail

1 1.0

An official system that sends letters and packages between places, often run by the government

1 2.8

Letters and packages sent by plane to other countries

1 2.8

A person who sorts and handles mail in an office or post office

mail train
  • Archaic
1 2.6

A train that carries letters and packages for the post

coat of mail
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A piece of clothing with small metal rings linked together that protects the body in battle

1 2.8

A service that sends letters and packages faster than regular post

mail car
  • Archaic
1 3.5

A train carriage where postal workers sort and carry mail while the train moves

1 2.8

A boat that carries mail to islands and remote places

1 3.7

A large strong bag that carries mail for delivery

mail service
  • Texting
1 2.8

An online service that sends, receives, and stores electronic messages for users

1 9.9

A type of flexible armor made of small metal rings linked together

bulk mail
  • Specialized
3.2

Mail sent by post in large amounts to many people, often ads or flyers

bulk mail
  • Texting
3.3

Large amounts of email sent at once to many people, often ads or unwanted messages

coat-of-mail shell
  • Specialized
9.9

A sea animal with eight overlapping hard plates that clings to rocks

7.2

Mail that cannot be delivered or returned to its sender

A fast mail service for letters and postcards that gets priority delivery

Buying things from a catalog or website that come to your home

Letters and packages sent by land or sea instead of by air

2.8

Printed items sent by post at a lower cost and slower delivery

How Fast

to express
9 3.3
to rush
403 1.0
to expedite
  • Formal
45 6.5
dispatch
39 4.7
mail
659 1.0
to send
1.0

Surface Forms

mail singular
mails plural

Etymology

Mail for the postal system comes from the same old word for a bag that carried letters, and in time the whole delivery service took that name. So when people say 'the mail' they mean the system that moves those bags and their contents.