1st-class mail
- noun
- /fɜrst klæs meɪl/
:
correo de primera clase
- I sent the documents by 1st-class mail to ensure they arrived quickly.
Examples
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Don't forget to use 1st-class mail for urgent documents.
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I sent the letter via 1st-class mail.
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Packages shipped as 1st-class mail are usually delivered within a few days.
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She prefers to use 1st-class mail for important correspondence.
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I sent the documents by 1st-class mail to ensure they arrived quickly.
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Packages shipped as 1st-class mail are usually delivered within a few days.
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She prefers to use 1st-class mail for important correspondence.
Synonyms
9
2.2
A mail service that gives letters and small packages faster delivery
1
2.2
A fast mail service for letters and small packages that is delivered before other mail
Mail handled first and sent faster, like letters or postcards
How Fast
Surface Forms
Morphology
1st-class + mail
The meaning 'a priority category of mail' is directly compositional from '1st-class' (first-class, indicating highest priority or quality) + 'mail' (postal items). This follows a common English modifier + noun pattern and has clear equivalents in many languages, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
The term 1st-class mail comes from old post offices that sorted letters into 'classes'. The word 1st-class meant the top level, so 1st-class mail was handled first and sent faster, which is why it now means mail with 'priority' delivery.