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Glite Dictionary
post card

post card

1 1.0
A card sent by mail without an envelope, often with a picture on one side
  • noun
  • /ˈpoʊst kɑrd/
translation icon : postal
  • I LIKED YOUR POST CARD.

Examples

  • I'll send you a post card from Hollywood, chaps.

    The Boy Friend (1971)

  • You send me a post card when you get there.

    Milo (2012)

  • I can still send you a post card.

    The Giant Spider Invasion (1975)

  • I'll send you a post card.

    Dick Figures: The Movie (2013)

  • I had a post card from Roger.

    Being Julia (2004)

  • While traveling in Europe, I sent a post card to my grandmother with a beautiful picture of Paris.

  • He received a post card from a friend that showed a stunning sunset over the beach.

  • Every summer, I like to write a post card to my friends from the places I visit.

Synonyms

postcard
vspost card
184 1.0

A card with a picture that you send by mail with a short message

is the spaced spelling variant of the same term
picture postcard
vspost card
3 3.2

A small card with a photo of a place that you send to someone

is the general mail card that may or may not display an image
mailing-card
vspost card
2.7

A card sent by mail without an envelope that has a message

is the usual general name for that type of mail item
postal card
vspost card
1.8

A card you send through the mail without an envelope

is the general privately produced version not necessarily issued by authorities
lettercard
vspost card
  • Archaic
8.0

A folded card that you write inside and seal before mailing

is an open mail item meant to be written on without sealing

Surface Forms

post card singular
post cards plural
postcards plural
postcard singular

Morphology

post + card

The meaning is directly and compositionally derived from 'post' (mail/postal service) + 'card' (a small flat rectangular piece of card), so a learner who knows both constituents can infer a card sent by mail. This compound follows a common cross-linguistic pattern (e.g. tarjeta postal, carte postale) and therefore is immediately comprehensible to a B1 learner.

Etymology

Post card comes from the simple idea of a small card sent through the post, with post meaning 'mail' and often a picture on one side. So today post card means a picture card you send by mail to give a short message.