general delivery

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general delivery

A traveler picks up a package from general delivery at the post office.

Definition
  1. Noun:
    • A postal service for receiving mail: A service provided by a post office where mail is held for collection by the addressee, typically used when the recipient does not have a fixed or known address.
Usage
  • This term is used primarily in American English. It describes a specific counter or section within a post office.
  • The phrase is used with prepositions like or (e.g., "send it to general delivery," "pick it up at general delivery").
  • It functions as an uncountable noun in this context.
Examples
  • Noun:
    • While traveling across the country, he had his letters sent to general delivery at the main post office in each city.
    • Please address the package to me care of General Delivery, Springfield Post Office.
    • I need to check general delivery to see if my passport has arrived.
Advanced Usage
  • "To hold mail for general delivery": A phrase used by postal services to indicate they will keep mail for customer pickup.
    • The post office will hold packages for general delivery for up to 30 days.
  • "General delivery mail": Mail that is intended to be picked up at the post office.
    • The clerk sorted the general delivery mail into the holding bins.
Variants and Related Words
  • Hold for pickup: A similar, more modern postal service where a parcel is held at a post office or carrier location for recipient collection.
  • Poste restante: The term for an equivalent service used in many other English-speaking countries outside the United States and Canada.
Synonyms
  • Poste restante (International term)
  • Will call (A similar concept for package pickup from commercial carriers or retail stores)
Related Phrases
  • Care of General Delivery (c/o General Delivery): The standard format for addressing mail to be held under this service.
    • The letter was addressed to "Jane Doe, c/o General Delivery, Anytown, USA."
general delivery

A traveler picks up a package from general delivery at the post office.

Noun
  1. the part of a post office that handles mail for persons who call for it

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