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email

/ˈimeɪl/
/ˈimeɪl/
IPA guide

Other forms: emailed; emails; emailing

Email is an electronic message that's sent from one computer to another. When you receive good news in an email, you can forward the message to your friends and family.

Most email these days uses the Internet for connecting the sender and recipient. Unlike some other kinds of messaging, when you send an email to a friend, she doesn't have to be online at the same time to get your message. The next time she checks her email account, your email will be waiting for her. Email, sometimes spelled e-mail, is short for electronic mail, and was coined in the early 1980s.

Definitions of email
  1. noun
    (computer science) a system of world-wide electronic communication in which a computer user can compose a message at one terminal that can be regenerated at the recipient's terminal when the recipient logs in
    synonyms: e-mail, electronic mail
    see moresee less
    antonyms:
    snail mail
    any mail that is physically delivered by the postal service
    types:
    freemail
    a service providing free email delivery in exchange for exposure to advertising
    junk e-mail, spam
    unwanted e-mail (usually of a commercial nature sent out in bulk)
    type of:
    electronic communication
    communication by computer
  2. verb
    communicate electronically on the computer
    synonyms: e-mail, netmail
    see moresee less
    types:
    spam
    send unwanted or junk e-mail
    type of:
    telecommunicate
    communicate over long distances, as via the telephone or e-mail
Pronunciation
US
/ˈimeɪl/
UK
/ˈimeɪl/
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DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘email'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback
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