mail

English Online Dictionary. What means mail‎? What does mail mean?

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /meɪl/, Rhymes: -eɪl
• (pane–pain merger) Homophone: male

Etymology 1

From Middle English male, from Anglo-Norman male, Old French male (“bag, wallet”), from Frankish *malha (“bag”), from Proto-Germanic *malhō (“bag, pouch”), from Proto-Indo-European *molko- (“leather pouch”). Compare Dutch maal.

Noun

mail (countable and uncountable, plural mails)

1. (now regional) A bag or wallet. [from 13^thc.]
2. A bag containing letters to be delivered by post.
4. The (physical) material conveyed by the postal service. [from 17^thc.]

   Synonym: snail mail

   Antonyms: email, mail

   Meronym: mailpiece

   • 1823, The stranger in Liverpool; or, An historical and descriptive view of the town of Liverpool and its environs, Seventh Edition, T. Kaye, page 96,

     The following are the hours at which the letter-box of this office is closed for making up the several mails, and the hours at which each mail is despatched: ¶ […]

   • 1887, John Houston Merrill (editor), The American and English Encyclopædia of Law, Volume I, Edward Thompson, p.121,

     If he retains the account, and permits several mails to pass without objecting to it, he will be held to have admitted its correctness.
   1. (chiefly US, uncountable) The letters, parcels, etc. delivered to a particular address or person. [from 19^thc.]

5. (dated) A stagecoach, train or ship that delivers such post.
7. The postal service or system in general. [from 17^thc.]

   Synonym: (UK, Ireland) post

9. (uncountable) Electronic mail, e-mail: a computer network–based service for sending, storing, and forwarding electronic messages. [from 20^thc.]

   Synonym: email

11. (uncountable) Email messages conceived in bulk (as with the analogous sense of physical mail).

    Synonym: email

13. (countable, especially India) An email message.

    Synonym: email

14. A trunk, box, or bag, in which clothing, etc., may be carried.

Usage notes

In the United States, the mails (with the and in the plural) can mean "the postal system".

Derived terms

Descendants

• → Japanese: メール

Translations

Verb

mail (third-person singular simple present mails, present participle mailing, simple past and past participle mailed)

2. (ditransitive) To send (a letter, parcel, etc.) through the mail.
3. (ditransitive) To send by electronic mail.
4. (transitive) To contact (a person) by electronic mail.

Synonyms

• (send through the mail): post

Derived terms

Descendants

• → Thai: เมล์ (mee)

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English mayle (“mail armor”), borrowed from Old French maille (“loop, stitch”), from Vulgar Latin *macla, from Latin macula (“blemish, mesh”), probably from Proto-Indo-European *smh₁-tleh₂, from *smeh₁- (“smear, rub”).

Alternative forms

• maille

Noun

mail (usually uncountable, plural mails)

2. (uncountable, history) Armour consisting of metal rings linked together.
3. (uncountable, by extension, now fiction, fantasy) Armour consisting of small plates linked together.
4. (nautical) A contrivance of interlinked rings, for rubbing off the loose hemp on lines and white cordage.
5. Any hard protective covering of an animal, as the scales and plates of reptiles, shell of a lobster, etc.
6. (obsolete, rare) A spot on a bird's feather; by extension, a spotted feather.

Usage notes

• Mail for a type of armour is in specialist academic usage now restricted to armour made up of interlocking rings, where its use for scale armour, lamellar armour or brigandine is considered antiquarian.

Derived terms

Related terms

• mailed

Translations

Verb

mail (third-person singular simple present mails, present participle mailing, simple past and past participle mailed)

1. (transitive) To arm with mail.
2. (transitive) To pinion.

Etymology 3

From Middle English mal, male from Old English māl (“speech, contract, agreement”) from Old Norse mál (“agreement, speech, lawsuit”). Akin to Old English mǣl (“speech”). Related to Old English mǣlan (mell), maþelian (“to speak out, declare”). From *maþlą (“meeting-place”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *meh₂d- (“to encounter, come”), if so, related to meet, and moot.

Alternative forms

• maile, maill, maille

Noun

mail (plural mails)

1. (historical) An old French coin worth half a denier.
2. (chiefly Scotland) A monetary payment or tribute.
3. (chiefly Scotland) Rent.
4. (chiefly Scotland) Tax.

Derived terms

Anagrams

• Alim, Liam, Lima, Mali, Mila, alim, lima, mali

Dalmatian

Etymology

From Latin milium.

Noun

mail m

1. millet
2. birdseed

Danish

Etymology

Borrowed from English email.

Noun

mail

1. email

Declension

Dutch

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /meːl/
• Rhymes: -eːl
• Homophone: meel

Etymology 1

Shortened from e-mail.

Noun

mail m (plural mails, diminutive mailtje n)

1. (nonstandard) Alternative form of e-mail

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

mail

1. inflection of mailen:
   1. first-person singular present indicative
   2. (in case of inversion) second-person singular present indicative
   3. imperative

Emilian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmajl/

Noun

mail f pl

1. plural of maila

Estonian

Noun

mail

1. adessive plural of maa

Fiji Hindi

Etymology

Borrowed from English mile (“imperial measure of distance”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /maɪl/

Noun

mail

1. mile

References

• Fiji Hindi Dictionary

French

Etymology 1

Inherited from Latin malleus (“hammer”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /maj/

Noun

mail m (plural mails)

1. maul
2. (sports, historical) pall mall mallet
3. (by extension) pall mall
4. mall, promenade
5. (Quebec) mall, shopping mall

Derived terms

• maillet

Related terms

• malléable

Etymology 2

Borrowed from English email.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɛl/, /mɛjl/

Noun

mail m (plural mails)

1. (informal) email

   Synonyms: courriel, mél

Further reading

• “mail”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Anagrams

• lima

German

Pronunciation

Verb

mail

1. singular imperative of mailen
2. (colloquial) first-person singular present of mailen

Gothic

Romanization

mail

1. Romanization of 𐌼𐌰𐌹𐌻

Italian

Etymology

Clipping of e-mail.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛjl/, /ˈmejl/
• Rhymes: -ɛjl, -ejl

Noun

mail f (invariable)

1. (colloquial) email

   Synonym: posta elettronica

Derived terms

• mail spazzatura (“spam mail”)

References

Further reading

• mail in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana

Anagrams

• Mali, almi, lima, mali, mila

Middle English

Noun

mail

1. Alternative form of mayle

Polish

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English mail.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛjl/
• Rhymes: -ɛjl
• Syllabification: mail
• Homophone: mejl

Noun

mail m inan

1. Alternative spelling of mejl

Declension

Derived terms

Related terms

Further reading

• mail in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• mail in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Romansch

Alternative forms

• meil (Sursilvan, Surmiran)
• mel (Sutsilvan)

Etymology

From Late Latin mēlum, from Latin mālum. Compare Friulian mêl, Romanian măr.

Noun

mail m (plural mails)

1. (Rumantsch Grischun, Vallader) apple

Synonyms

• (Puter) pom

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmeil/ [ˈmei̯l]
• Rhymes: -eil

Noun

mail m (plural mailes)

1. email

   Synonyms: correo, correo electrónico, email

Swedish

Noun

mail n

1. Alternative spelling of mejl

Declension

Anagrams

• Liam, Lima, Mali, mila

Tok Pisin

Etymology

From English mile.

Noun

mail

1. mile