philately
Americannoun
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the collecting of stamps and other postal matter as a hobby or an investment.
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the study of postage stamps, revenue stamps, stamped envelopes, postmarks, postal cards, covers, and similar material relating to postal or fiscal history.
noun
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the collection and study of postage stamps and all related material concerned with postal history
Other Word Forms
- philatelic adjective
- philatelical adjective
- philatelically adverb
- philatelist noun
Etymology
Origin of philately
First recorded in 1860–65; from French philatélie, from Greek phil- phil- + atéleia “freedom from charges” (taken to mean recipient's freedom from delivery charges by virtue of the stamp which sender affixed to the letter), literally, “want of taxation,” equivalent to a- a- 6 + tél(os) “tax” + -eia -y 3
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
To anyone who knows anything about philately, the words “stamps of Bosnia and Herzegovina” need no further explanation.
From The New Yorker • Jan. 7, 2019
Might Kim Jong-un be as susceptible to philately, and consider a re-run for Harry and Meghan?
From The Guardian • Mar. 29, 2018
The sedate world of philately has seen of a surprising number of stamp controversies since Sir Rowland Hill introduce the Penny Black in 1840.
From BBC • Oct. 9, 2017
Biology could not be reduced to physics, nor could philately or philology.
From Slate • Sep. 8, 2016
Jake’s mom shouted when he answered “A stamp” for the question “In philately, what is an Inverted Jenny?”
From "The Smartest Kid in the Universe" by Chris Grabenstein
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.