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postcode

American  
[pohst-kohd] / ˈpoʊstˌkoʊd /

noun

British.
  • postcodes
    plural
  1. an official code used by the post office, similar to the U.S. zip code, that adds numbers and letters to addresses to expedite mail delivery.


postcode British  
/ ˈpəʊstˌkəʊd /

noun

  1. Also called: postal code.  US equivalent: zip code.  a code of letters and digits used as part of a postal address to aid the sorting of mail

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of postcode

First recorded in 1965–70; post 3 + code

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Last month, Burnham promised to give all mayors a share of income tax revenue, saying he wanted to "bring power home" to "every postcode".

From BBC Aug. 23, 2026

Stephen has a warning, though: "A return to the UK could be a useful brand reset, but a postcode does not reposition a brand. Behaviour does."

From BBC Aug. 22, 2026

He said it would also help to put an end to "the confusing and unjust postcode lottery caused by different rules in different areas".

From BBC Aug. 18, 2026

He said the government's aim was to make the country "more resilient" and to "drive growth in every postcode".

From BBC Aug. 13, 2026

On Yahoo’s front page there are news stories, tailored to your postcode or whatever—God only knows how they know my postcode, but they do.

From "The Girl on the Train" by Paula Hawkins

Many of the parties' most-viewed adverts were targeted towards individual towns, constituencies or even postcodes.

From BBC Apr. 25, 2026

The Birmingham postcodes which account for the five hot spots are B25, B18, B66, B21 and B35.

From BBC Apr. 17, 2026

Hot spot areas include Birmingham, which has five out of the top 15 postcodes in the UK for accidents involving uninsured drivers.

From BBC Apr. 17, 2026

The men used Google to search affluent postcodes to identify potential targets, according to police, before looking up floor plans on Rightmove.

From BBC Apr. 14, 2026

Scottish Water said the following postcodes had been affected by the spill.

From BBC Feb. 20, 2026

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