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Glite Dictionary
US Post Office

US Post Office

1 2.0
A government service that delivers letters and packages across the United States
  • noun
  • /juː ɛs poʊst ˈɔfɪs/
translation icon : Servicio Postal de EE. UU.
  • The US Post Office is responsible for delivering mail to homes and businesses across the country.

Examples

  • Expect a lot of people to knock the US Post Office over the next few days.

    Blog text (17)

  • My husband works for the US Post Office; I take it for granted until I read a post like yours...

    Blog text (25)

  • stamps.com has all the amazing services of the US Post Office right at your fingertips.

  • Yes, that's the damn US Post Office here in Altamonte Springs, FL.

    Blog text (22)

  • In 1893, Lew Rosen was indicted in New York for using the US Post Office to mail materials considered obscene.

    Academic text (2015)

  • You can buy stamps and mailing supplies at the US Post Office to send your letters and packages.

  • Many people rely on the US Post Office for timely delivery of important documents and packages.

Synonyms

Post Office
vsUS Post Office
24 1.0

A public place where people send and pick up letters and parcels

is the national independent agency rather than a local postal department
PO
vsUS Post Office
  • US
19 1.8

A building where people send and receive mail

is the full national agency name rather than an abbreviated label
USPS
vsUS Post Office
10 3.4

A government service that handles mail and deliveries in the United States

is the same agency but written as its common abbreviation
postal service
vsUS Post Office
10 1.4

A system that sends and delivers letters and packages

is the specific federal agency operating within that national system
United States Postal Service
vsUS Post Office
  • Formal
3 2.4

A government agency that delivers letters and packages across the United States

is the same agency but expressed with the full formal name
US Postal Service
vsUS Post Office
3 2.3

A government service that collects, sorts, and delivers mail across the United States

is the same agency but often used as an alternate name
mail service
vsUS Post Office
1 1.0

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

is the independent federal body that runs this system in the country
United States Post Office
vsUS Post Office
  • Formal
1 2.0

A government service that delivers letters and packages across the United States

is the same national agency but uses a slightly different formal title

Surface Forms

US Post Office singular
US Post Offices plural

Morphology

US + post + office

The meaning 'the national postal service agency of the United States' is directly and transparently composed from 'US' (United States) + 'post' (mail) + 'office' (place/agency). This straightforward, compositional naming pattern is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words will readily understand the phrase.

Etymology

US Post Office gets its name from the old word post, which meant a stop on a mail route where messages were left or riders changed horses, and office, the building where work is done. Because these stops became places to send and collect letters, the name came to mean 'the national mail service in the United States'.