mailboat

or mail boat

[ meyl-boht ]

noun

1. a boat for transporting mail.

Word History and Origins

Origin of mailboat¹

An Americanism dating back to 1785–95; mail ¹ + boat

Example Sentences

Rough weather can delay ferries and mailboats, leaving residents stuck for days.

From Seattle Times

Others are blue-collar communities whose lifeblood depends on fishing, farming and the groceries and fuel delivered by a weekly mailboat that is nowhere to be seen.

From Washington Post

Until an airport opened in 2017, the only way to reach St Helena, home to 4,500 islanders, was by sea, involving a five-night voyage on the mailboat from Cape Town.

From The Guardian

Austin thanked him profusely, and felt a good deal easier when he and the mailboat's doctor, who arrived presently and gave him good advice, went away.

From Project Gutenberg

Elsie went round by Marseilles, saw the Seraph on board a P. and O. mailboat bound for Bombay and came overland to Rimini.

From Project Gutenberg