or e-mail
[ ee-meyl ]
/ ˈiˌmeɪl /
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noun
a system for sending messages to one or more recipients via telecommunications links between computers using dedicated software or a web-based service: Communication by email is almost instantaneous.
a message sent by email: Send me an email about that idea, and I'll get back to you.
verb (used with object)
to send (a message or file) to (a person or organization) by email: He emailed his response to the invitation. I emailed the company but haven’t heard back yet.
verb (used without object)
to send an email; communicate by email or exchange emails: She emailed to say she’ll be on vacation next week. We emailed back and forth for three weeks before actually meeting.
QUIZZES
QUIZ YOURSELF ON “THEIR,” “THERE,” AND “THEY’RE”
Are you aware how often people swap around “their,” “there,” and “they’re”? Prove you have more than a fair grasp over these commonly confused words.
Question 1 of 7
Which one of these commonly confused words can act as an adverb or a pronoun?
Origin of email
First recorded in 1975–80; e(lectronic) + mail1
historical usage of email
See internet.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for email
British Dictionary definitions for email
e-mail
/ (ˈiːmeɪl) /
noun
short for electronic mail
verb (tr)
to contact (a person) by electronic mail
to send (a message, document, etc) by electronic mail
Derived forms of e-mail
e-mailer, nounCollins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for email
e-mail
email (ē′māl′)
A system for sending and receiving messages electronically over a computer network. E-mail is asynchronous and does not require the receiver of the message to be online at the time the message is sent or received. E-mail also allows a user to distribute messages to large numbers of recipients instantaneously.
A message or messages sent or received by such a system.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for email
e-mail
E-mail has become one of the most widely used aspects of the Internet, because it provides a means of mass communication to almost anywhere in the world at high speed.
notes for e-mail
The proliferation of spam and the transmission of computer viruses through e-mail attachments are two of the more problematic aspects of this technology.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.