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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

postage stamps plural

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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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• postage stamps
  plural

Etymology

Origin of postage stamp¹

First recorded in 1830–40

Origin of postage-stamp²

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

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

Since then, everything has gone up dramatically in cost—from the price of a postage stamp or slice of pizza to the cost of a home or college tuition.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 19, 2026

It is also smaller than other airports, such as nearby Dulles International Airport, with Mr Slack calling it a postage stamp.

From BBC • Jan. 31, 2025

Betty White, who died in 2021 after a decades-spanning career in television, will be honored with a postage stamp in 2025, the U.S.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 18, 2024

It had a yard the size of a postage stamp and the grass never seemed to grow enough to need mowing.

From "Lawn Boy" by Gary Paulsen