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 The Illinois Department of Insurance said snail mail is an acceptable form of notification — and certified mail is not required under state law. — Megan De Mar, CBS News, 15 June 2026 You will then be asked to provide a notice ID and confirmation code, which can only be obtained from an official settlement email or snail mail notice. — Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 30 Apr. 2026 From social media popularity to real-life snail mail Other mail-club founders agree that having a social media following can help reel in subscribers quickly. — Megan Sauer, CNBC, 30 Apr. 2026 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 See All Example Sentences for snail mail
Recent Examples of Synonyms for snail mail
  1. mail
  2. parcel post
  3. correspondence
Noun
  • Whether a doctor sends it to you via mail or hands it to you in their office, mifepristone is safe and effective.
    — Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 9 Sep. 2026
  • These included rolling back childhood vaccine requirements, threatening to demolish the Kennedy Center, and attacking mail-in voting.
    — Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 9 Sep. 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
  • The wormholes are known as Langlands correspondences, and the decades-long effort by hundreds of mathematicians to extend and exploit these correspondences is the Langlands program.
    — Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 9 Sep. 2026
  • Most moving, above all, are the correspondences with the writers themselves who reach out at their own expense—quite literally.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 9 Sep. 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 14 Sep. 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 empirical

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

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

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

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

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

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Popular

See More

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

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
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
funny guinea pig in glasses reading a book
Challenging Words You Should Know Vol 2 Words to the wise
See All