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• mail order
  mail order

  noun

  an order for goods received or shipped through the mail.
• mail-order
  mail-order

  adjective

  pertaining to or obtained by mail order.

mail order

¹ American  

noun

1. an order for goods received or shipped through the mail.

2. the business of selling merchandise through the mail.

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mail-order ² American  

[meyl-awr-der] / ˈmeɪlˌɔr dər /

adjective

1. pertaining to or obtained by mail order.

   a dozen mail-order rosebushes.

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verb (used with object)

1. to order (merchandise) by mail.

   to mail-order fruitcakes for Christmas.

mail order British  

noun

1. an order for merchandise sent by post

2. 1. a system of buying and selling merchandise through the post

   2. ( as modifier )

      a mail-order firm

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Etymology

Origin of mail order¹

An Americanism dating back to 1865–70

Origin of mail-order²

First recorded in 1865–70

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

mail order mail-order

Aimée thinks that Millennials in particular have so much nostalgia for catalogs because they were the generation that witnessed e-commerce overtake mail order.

From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026

Rosalba worked in the accounting department of a mail order catalog company and later helped her husband run a mechanic shop in Granada Hills.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 19, 2026

She now has a team of 14 in the bakery, sends her biscuits all over the country, and has partnered with a mail order flower firm.

From BBC ● Jan. 15, 2026

To determine whether a pharmacy service was mail order, in-person or another type, the analysis used the classification listed in the record of each prescription.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 27, 2025

He nodded toward the package sitting next to Grace, a mail order from the kitchen store.

From "Far from the Tree" by Robin Benway

A London shop catering for people who are left-handed was doing a brisk trade both in-store and via mail-order.

From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026

That shift would help rural patients gain access to advanced treatments through mail-order pharmacies, rather than traveling hours to the nearest infusion center.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

But in between, Charlotte, now 43, says they fought over who got the first look at the mail-order catalogs that, at the time, were the first to cater specifically to a tween and teen-girl audience.

From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026

Critics say their role negotiating pricing and discounts with drug companies has made some medicines less affordable, while at the same time parent companies of large PBMs also own mail-order, specialty, or retail pharmacies.

From Barron's ● May 5, 2026

At ten, Monique had begun poring over a mail-order doll catalog as if it were a book—expensive dolls, with names and stories and historical outfits, absurdly detailed and even more absurdly expensive.

From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng