snail mail

noun

Definition of snail mailnext
as in mail
communications or parcels sent or carried through the postal system even though she has an e-mail account, she still prefers to send snail mail

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of snail mail While many important tax documents are still sent out on physical paper, people increasingly are opting out of snail mail these days. — ABC News, 15 Apr. 2026 In the end, the public voted via snail mail for a person who embodied perhaps the exact opposite of both — Miskel Spillman, an elderly widow whose first plane ride ever brought her to New York City to stand beside her fellow finalists. — Sandra Gonzalez, CNN Money, 30 Jan. 2026 Below, some of them explain the appeal of snail mail and give recommendations for getting started. — Cheyanne Mumphrey, Fortune, 17 Jan. 2026 But who doesn't love to receive a little snail mail? — Sam Woodward, USA Today, 2 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for snail mail
Recent Examples of Synonyms for snail mail
  1. mail
  2. parcel post
  3. correspondence
Noun
  • One piece of mail from the United Democracy Project quotes comments from Twitch streamer and El-Sayed fan Hasan Piker, such as a dark joke about 9/11, that Third Way tried to use months ago to hurt the progressive.
    — David Weigel, semafor.com, 15 July 2026
  • Patten was convicted in an unrelated mail fraud case in 2010 and sentenced to 27 months in prison.
    — Dan Mangan, CNBC, 15 July 2026
Definition of mail
Noun
  • Competition also came from airlines and intercity bus lines that could easily carry parcel post on their routes.
    — Richard Selcer, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Feb. 2024
  • Extending parcel post to the countryside was vehemently opposed by merchants, who feared competition from Sears Roebuck and other mail order houses.
    — Tom Dillard, Arkansas Online, 14 Mar. 2021
Definition of parcel post
Noun
  • Berton Knox, who ran unsuccessful campaigns for Congress in 2014 and 2016 said he’s communicated with the White House but hasn’t had any direct correspondence.
    — Jack Harvel, Kansas City Star, 10 July 2026
  • The pottery fragments were used to record daily transactions and correspondence, according to Diaa Zaharan, head of the Islamic, Coptic and Jewish antiquities department at the Supreme Council of Antiquities.
    — Lea Tran, TheWeek, 10 July 2026
Definition of correspondence

Browse Nearby Words

snaillike
snail mail
snail-paced
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Snail mail.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/snail%20mail. Accessed 16 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of bibelot

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
child-detective
Spot the Misspelled Word July 2026 Those little red underlines can't help you now...
See All