snail mail

American  

noun

Facetious.

1. physical delivery of mail, as contrasted with email.

2. the letters, packages, etc., delivered this way.

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snail mail British  

noun

1. the conventional postal system, as opposed to electronic mail

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verb

1. (tr) to send by the conventional postal system, rather than by electronic mail

snail mail Cultural  

1. A term used to denote mail sent via the traditional postal service, usually to contrast that process to e-mail.

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snail mail Idioms  

1. Ordinary postal service, as opposed to electronic communications. For example, He hasn't taken to his computer so he's still using snail mail. This slangy idiom, alluding to the alleged slowness of the snail, caught on at least partly for its rhyme. [1980s]

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Etymology

Origin of snail mail

First recorded in 1980–85

Example Sentences

Part of what’s appealing about snail mail, she said, is remembering that “it’s really nice to devote your entire attention to something.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 1, 2026

There will be a paper trail, either email or snail mail.

From MarketWatch • Nov. 20, 2025

As I waited for my blood test results via snail mail, I became increasingly interested not only in what the environmental health risks of the fires are, but also how our brains process them.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 2, 2025

If you choose to write a check, you can hand it to the recipient to circumvent the risks of snail mail.

From New York Times • Jan. 7, 2024

And an impatient manager was unlikely to be willing to wait a week for the new password to arrive courtesy of snail mail.

From Underground by Dreyfus, Suelette