mail order

¹

noun

1. an order for goods received or shipped through the mail.
2. the business of selling merchandise through the mail.

mail-order

²

[ meyl-awr-der ]

adjective

1. pertaining to or obtained by mail order:

   a dozen mail-order rosebushes.

verb (used with object)

1. to order (merchandise) by mail:

   to mail-order fruitcakes for Christmas.

mail order

noun

1. an order for merchandise sent by post
2. 1. a system of buying and selling merchandise through the post
   2. ( as modifier )

      a mail-order firm

Word History and Origins

Origin of mail order¹

An Americanism dating back to 1865–70

Origin of mail order²

First recorded in 1865–70

Example Sentences

The Mount Washington–based nursery is offering two classes for beginning gardeners starting in February — one explaining how to grow cannabis at home and the other how to harvest it; both are taught by educator Emily Gogol, chief executive of Grow It From Home, an Oregon-based company that sells mail-order cannabis seeds and plants the same way other nurseries sell veggie starts.

From Los Angeles Times

The law would also mostly bar PBMs from steering patients to pharmacies they own, which includes the major mail-order pharmacies.

From Los Angeles Times

Gone are the days of receiving a mail-order catalog and circling the items you wished to buy with a bright red Sharpie.

From Salon

Eliza Tibbets ran a mail-order business for her buds — five cents each.

From Los Angeles Times

Others have had trouble receiving mail-order prescriptions and medical equipment.

From Los Angeles Times