mail

¹

[meyl]

noun

1. letters, packages, etc., that are sent or delivered by means of a postal system.

   Storms delayed delivery of the mail.

2. a single collection of such letters, packages, etc., as sent or delivered.

   to open one's mail; to find a bill in the mail; The mail for England was put on the noon plane.

3. Often mails a system, usually operated or supervised by the national government, for sending or delivering letters, packages, etc.; a postal system: Some people don't trust the mails.

   The travel brochures arrived by mail.

   Some people don't trust the mails.

4. a train, boat, etc., as a carrier of postal matter.

5. email.

adjective

1. of or relating to mail.

verb (used with object)

1. to send by mail, as by placing in a mailbox; transmit by a postal system.

2. to transmit by email.

verb (used without object)

1. to be sent by a postal system.

   Tax forms are mailing today.

2. to transmit messages by email.

   We only mail to people who sign up on our website.

mail

²

[meyl]

noun

1. flexible armor of interlinked rings.

2. any flexible armor or covering, as one having a protective exterior of scales or small plates.

3. Textiles.,  an oval piece of metal pierced with a hole through which the warp ends are threaded, serving as an eyelet on a heddle or especially on the harness cords of a Jacquard loom.

verb (used with object)

1. to clothe or arm with mail.

mail

³

Or maill

[meyl]

noun

Scot.

1. monetary payment or tribute, especially rent or tax.

mail

¹

/ meɪl /

noun

1. Also called (esp Brit): post. letters, packages, etc, that are transported and delivered by the post office

2. the postal system

3. a single collection or delivery of mail

4. a train, ship, or aircraft that carries mail

5. short for electronic mail

6. (modifier) of, involving, or used to convey mail

   a mail train

verb

1. Usual Brit word: post. to send by mail

2. to contact (a person) by electronic mail

3. to send (a message, document, etc) by electronic mail

mail

²

/ meɪl /

noun

1. a type of flexible armour consisting of riveted metal rings or links

2. the hard protective shell of such animals as the turtle and lobster

verb

1. (tr) to clothe or arm with mail

mail

³

/ meɪl /

noun

1. archaic,  a monetary payment, esp of rent or taxes

mail

⁴

/ meɪl /

noun

1. informal,  a rumour or report, esp a racing tip

Other Word Forms

• mailless adjective
• mailable adjective
• mailability noun
• mail-less adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of mail¹

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English noun mal(l)e, mail(e), maille “bag, pouch,” from Old French mal(l)e “peddler's basket, trunk, mail coach,” from Germanic; compare Old High German mal(a)ha “satchel, bag”; verb derivative of the noun

Origin of mail²

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English maille, maill(e) “one of the rings of which armor was composed,” from Old French mail(l)e, male, from Latin macula “spot, one of the interstices in a net, a mesh”; macula

Origin of mail³

First recorded before 1150; Middle English mol(e), moul, male, late Old English māl “lawsuit, legal action, agreement,” from Old Norse māl “speech, stipulation, legal case, agreement,” cognate with Old English mǣl “speech, conversation” and mæthel “assembly, meeting”

Word History and Origins

Origin of mail¹

C13: from Old French male bag, probably from Old High German malha wallet

Origin of mail²

C14: from Old French maille mesh, from Latin macula spot

Origin of mail³

Old English māl terms, from Old Norse māl agreement

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. copy the mail, to monitor or listen to a CB transmission.

Example Sentences

People across the country are just beginning to receive notices in the mail showing their premiums will double, or worse, next year.

Read more on Salon

Hundreds of Wall Street Journal readers responded to the story—by email, in the article’s comments section, on social media and even by snail mail.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

In recent years, the FDA has allowed women to access the medication through telehealth providers and receive it by mail.

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Members pay to receive a CD by mail based on their taste, along with a handwritten note about the album.

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More than 70% of households already use community mailboxes to pick up letters delivered, so the changes will largely affect older urban neighborhoods where postal carriers continue to deliver mail.

Read more on Wall Street Journal