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• postage stamp
  postage stamp

  noun

  a small gummed label issued by postal authorities that can be affixed to an envelope, postcard, or package as evidence that postal charges have been paid.
• postage-stamp
  postage-stamp

  adjective

  of very small area or size.

postage stamp

¹ American  

noun

1. a small gummed label issued by postal authorities that can be affixed to an envelope, postcard, or package as evidence that postal charges have been paid.

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postage-stamp ² American  

[poh-stij-stamp] / ˈpoʊ stɪdʒˌstæmp /

adjective

Informal.

1. of very small area or size.

   a postage-stamp bikini.

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postage stamp British  

noun

1. a printed paper label with a gummed back for attaching to mail as an official indication that the required postage has been paid

2. a mark directly printed or embossed on an envelope, postcard, etc, serving the same function

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Etymology

Origin of postage stamp¹

First recorded in 1830–40

Origin of postage-stamp²

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

Three dozen works, some as tiny as a postage stamp, show the stunning range of styles and artists that the museum has championed across the years.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 1, 2026

The analogy is shrinking a 4K image to the size of a postage stamp — except the picture is still 4K.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 6, 2026

The idea for a commemorative postage stamp was suggested by sub-postmasters, and could help raise funds for Lost Chances and educational initiatives related to the scandal.

From BBC • Oct. 31, 2025

Artist Corita Kent, the former Los Angeles nun whose colorful works include the immensely popular “LOVE” postage stamp, died in her Boston home Thursday after a six-month battle against cancer.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 7, 2025

Constitution off a postage stamp, and when I got two weeks behind on that, I had two more weeks of newspapers to pick up.

From "It’s Kind of a Funny Story" by Ned Vizzini