Meet 郵 in words used to send and receive physical mail.

The idea

郵 has 11 strokes; use the linked diagram for their order. Its common on-reading is ゆう: learn 郵便（ゆうびん） and 郵送（ゆうそう） as complete words.

Patterns to compare
WordReadingExample
郵便局ゆうびんきょくI bought stamps at the post office.
郵便ゆうびんI will send the letter by post.
郵便番号ゆうびんばんごうPlease write the postal code here.
郵便受けゆうびんうけA letter arrived in the mailbox.
郵送ゆうそうI submitted the documents by post.
郵便料金ゆうびんりょうきんI checked the postage at the counter.

Examples

  • 郵便局ゆうびんきょくで切手きってを買かいました。I bought stamps at the post office.
  • 手紙てがみを郵便ゆうびんで送おくります。I will send the letter by post.
  • 郵便番号ゆうびんばんごうをここに書かいてください。Please write the postal code here.
  • 郵便受ゆうびんうけに手紙てがみが届とどきました。A letter arrived in the mailbox.
  • 郵送ゆうそうで書類しょるいを提出ていしゅつしました。I submitted the documents by post.
  • 郵便料金ゆうびんりょうきんを窓口まどぐちで確認かくにんしました。I checked the postage at the counter.

Read-aloud uses a synthetic Japanese voice available on your device. Voice quality and availability vary; it does not assess your pronunciation.

Watch out

郵便 refers to postal mail; メール usually means email. 郵送 describes sending something by post, not the post office itself.

Try it yourself

  1. Write the reading of 郵便 in hiragana.

    Show answer or example answer

    ゆうびん

    郵便 is ゆうびん, meaning postal mail. The long ゆう is part of the reading.

  2. Write the reading of 郵送 in hiragana.

    Show answer or example answer

    ゆうそう

    郵送 is ゆうそう: sending by post. Both ゆう and そう have long vowels.

  3. Choose the missing kanji: ＿便局（ゆうびんきょく）［郵／由］.

    Show answer or example answer

    郵

    郵 completes 郵便局（ゆうびんきょく）, a post office; 由 does not form this word.

Use it today

Write 郵 with the stroke diagram, then cover the table and read 郵便 and 郵送. Make a sentence about sending a letter.