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Glite Dictionary
1st class

1st class

2.9
Mail handled first and sent faster, like letters or postcards
  • noun
translation icon : primer clase

Examples

  • The captain says that they travel 1st class, but nobody knows his language.

    Visions of Europe (2004)

  • I always choose 1st class for mailing important documents to ensure they arrive quickly.

  • She sent the birthday card via 1st class mail, so it would get there on time.

  • For urgent packages, I recommend using 1st class service at the post office.

Synonyms

first class
vs1st class
9 2.2

A mail service that gives letters and small packages faster delivery

is the same but appears without hyphenation or the explicit mail word
first-class mail
vs1st class
  • Formal
1 2.2

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

is the same but uses a hyphenated word form rather than a numeral
1st-class mail
vs1st class
1.8

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

is the same but written with a numeral and hyphen instead of words

How Fast

express mail
1 2.8
to overnight
5 3.2
1st class
2.9

Surface Forms

1st class singular
1st classes plural

Morphology

1st + class

The meaning is directly composed from '1st' (first/top) + 'class' (category), so a B1 learner who knows those words can infer it denotes the highest/prioritized category of mail. The numeric abbreviation '1st' is transparent and the construction (first + class = top category) is cross-linguistically common, making the expression immediately comprehensible.

Etymology

1St class comes from travel and old mail systems where first meant the top group and class meant a level of service, like the best seats on a train or ship. Mail marked 1st class was treated like those top passengers' things and moved faster, so today it means post sent with 'quick service'.