Word
post office
Definition
compound. A building where you can mail letters and packages, buy stamps, and use other postal services.
compound. A public facility providing mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels for transmission and selling postage stamps.
Examples
“I need to go to the post office later.”
“She went to the post office to send a birthday card to her grandmother.”
“The town's original post office, a beautiful Victorian building, is now preserved as a local history museum.”
Examples
simple
“I need to go to the post office later.”
contextual
“She went to the post office to send a birthday card to her grandmother.”
complex
“The town's original post office, a beautiful Victorian building, is now preserved as a local history museum.”
Usage
This is a compound noun written as two words; stress falls on the first word ('POST office').
Teaching tip
Contrast with 'mailroom' (an internal office mail department) and 'sorting office' (a large, non-public facility where mail is processed).
Pitfall
I'm going to the postoffice.
I'm going to the post office.
In standard English, this compound noun is written as two separate words, not joined into one.
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/post-office