postal

American  

[pohs-tl] / ˈpoʊs tl /

adjective

1. of or relating to the post office or mail service.

   postal delivery; postal employees.

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noun

1. Informal. postal card.

idioms

1. go postal, to lose control or go crazy, especially in a violent way.

postal British  

/ ˈpəʊstəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to a Post Office or to the mail-delivery service

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Other Word Forms

• postally
  adverb

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Etymology

Origin of postal

First recorded in 1835–45; post ³ def. + -al ¹; 1990–95 postal for def. 3, in reference to incidents of violence among postal workers in the early 1990s

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Explanation

The term postal refers to an official, government-run mail service that delivers letters and packages right to your door or mailbox. Postal workers sort mail at post offices, sell postage stamps, collect packages to be delivered, and deliver the mail. When you're sending a package or letter to someone, you should include the correct postal code — also known as a ZIP code in the U.S. — in the address to help make sure it gets to the right place. The postal system connects people across towns, cities, and even countries by working to get letters and parcels to their intended destinations.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

postal

Padilla said postal inspectors intercepted a suspicious parcel addressed to his office, according to reports.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026

"In effect, lipids work like postal codes, giving distant but related parts of the brain the same chemical address," says D'Angelo.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 13, 2026

The postal service says the voice-over was “not designed to replicate any specific individual.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026

He is the head of Ukraine's state postal service, Ukrposhta.

From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026

‘No, I am a pharmacist. And John Roberts on your left is employed in the postal department of the government.’

From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers

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