Mailbag

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈmeɪlˌbæɡ/

Definitions

1. A bag designed to hold and carry mail ; the collection of letters and parcels received by an individual or group
2. A container for transporting mail items ; the total mail delivered to someone for reading or handling
3. A sack used for gathering and moving mail ; mail that has been received and is awaiting processing or response

Etymology: "Mailbag" is a plain compound: "mail" joined to "bag." "Mail" comes from Old French "male," meaning a bag or wallet, and it is that original sense of "bag" that makes the compound transparent. Before the word meant letters in transit, "mail" referred to the bag itself, so a mailbag was literally a bag of a bag. The compound's second sense, mail that has been received and is waiting to be dealt with, grew naturally from the first. A full mailbag was the thing a postal worker or official opened, sorted, and answered, so the bag came to stand for its contents. The same shift appears in phrases such as "the day's mail," where the material has taken over the name of its container.

Synonyms: postbag, letterbag, parcel bag, mail pouch, delivery bag