snail mail

A retronym emphasizing postal mail's slowness compared to email.

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snail mail (uncountable)

1. (retronym) Postal mail, especially as compared to email.
   • 1993 Nov. 9, L. R. Shannon, "Peripherals: MCI Mail Changes The Nature Of Letters," New York Times (retrieved 3 April 2014):

     To send a letter by snail mail (the Postal Service), you must still compose it, and also print it out, unless you write it by hand or on a typewriter.

• smail