A letter box, letterbox, letter plate, letter hole, deed, mail slot, or mailbox is a receptacle for receiving incoming mail at a private residence or business. For the opposite purpose of collating outgoing mail, a post box is generally used instead.
Letterboxes or mailboxes consist of four primary designs:
- A slot in a wall or door through which mail is delivered (through-door delivery)
- A box attached directly to the house (door-to-door delivery)
- A box mounted at or near the street (curbside delivery)
- A centralised mail delivery station consisting of individual mailboxes for an entire building
- A centralised mail delivery station consisting of individual mailboxes for multiple recipients at multiple addresses in a particular neighborhood or community
Read more about Letter Box: Styles and Usage
Famous quotes containing the words letter and/or box:
“And the one bird singing alone to his nest,
And the one star over the tower.
I thought of our little quarrels and strife,
And the letter that brought me back my ring;
And it all seem’d then, in the waste of life,”
—“Owen” “Meredith” (1831–1891)
“Come children, let us shut up the box and the puppets, for our play is played out.”
—William Makepeace Thackeray (1811–1863)