Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A public container for deposit of outgoing mail.
  • noun A private box for incoming mail.
  • noun A computer file or set of files for the collection and storage of e-mail.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A box placed in some public place, as at a street corner, for the deposit of letters to be gathered by the postman.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A public box for deposit of mail, where it is later picked up by the postal authority for delivery.
  • noun A private box to recieve delivery of mail. The term is used both for boxes receiving mail delivered by the public postal authority, or by a private services, such as for mail to employees in large corporations.
  • noun (Computers) A location within a computer storage device where electronic mail is held until it is retrieved by the addressee. Creation and use of an electronic mailbox requires special software as well as a data storage device.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A box into which mail is put
  • noun computing A folder or account for the storage of e-mail; an in-box.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a private box for delivery of mail
  • noun public box for deposit of mail

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

mail +‎ box

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Examples

Comments

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  • Every time I kiss you

    After a long separation

    I feel

    I am putting a hurried love letter

    In a red mailbox.

    - Nizar Qabbani, 'Every Time I Kiss You'.

    September 16, 2008