part of speech
noun (mail); verb (mail, mails, mailed, mailing)
meaning for a pupil
1) Mail is the letters and parcels sent by post. tree →
2) Mail is the system that carries them: send it by mail. tree →
3) To mail something is to send it by post. tree →
4) Mail is short for email. tree →
5) Mail (or chain mail) is armour made of small metal rings, worn by knights. tree →
sense in the lessons
In maths mail is items counted, sent or delivered: per day × days, or each × price of a stamp. Mailing takes the items away from the sender. In everyday life: checking the mail, a mailbox, junk mail, mailing a birthday card to Grandma. In safety: never open mail or emails from strangers that ask for passwords.
examples
- She mailed 12 cards. tree →
- The mail carrier delivers 300 letters a day. tree →
- Each stamp for the mail costs 1 dollar. tree →
- How many letters in a week? tree →
- Is there any mail for me today? tree →
- I mailed a postcard from the beach. tree →
- Lots of the mail was junk mail. tree →
- Check your mail for the class newsletter. tree →
- The knight wore a shirt of chain mail. tree →
- "Tan-ta-ra-ra, tan-ta-ra-ra," sounded the horn, and the mail-coach came lumbering up. tree →
note
Uncountable: «some mail», «a lot of mail» (not «a mail»); for one item say «a letter» or «a parcel». «Mail» is common in the USA and Canada; «post» in the UK, Ireland and Australia. Homophone: «male» (a boy or man). Maths trap: mailing takes the items away from the sender.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «mail» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.