The Meaning of Post: What It Is and How To Use It

Do you know the definition of post? This article will provide you with all of the information you need on the word post, including its definition, etymology, usage, example sentences, and more!

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What does the word post mean?

American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language and Collins English Dictionary state that the word post can be used in many different ways. It can be used as a transitive verb that means to put up, announce, or publish in person like on a bulletin board or on the internet.  The post can refer to letters and packages as a noun, or it can be used as a verb to mean to send via a post office or parcel service. A post can also refer to a  strong upright pole made of wood or metal that is dug into the ground, a body of troops occupying a military station, a horse’s gait in which one will to rise from the saddle and return to it in rhythm with a horse’s trot, the size of writing, a series of stations for keeping horses for relays, bugle calls sounded in the British army to give notice of the time, a size of printing paper, the latest news, a person who traveled express, especially over a fixed route, a series of stations furnishing relays of men, a basketball position taken by the center close to the basket, a post at the end of a race track, a collection of letters, the rounds of a person, and more. 

There are numerous different ways one can use the word post for the formation of compound words and loanwords. Take a look at this list from Word Sense. See how many of these words you know and how post can be used to form different compound words! Many different words like post can also be used as prefixes that form other words.

  • postwar
  •  post-rider
  •  postorbital
  •  postpose
  •  poster
  •  milepost
  •  trading post
  •  postconsumer
  •  postmillennial
  •  from pillar to post
  •  post-polio syndrome
  •  postgasm
  •  fencepost
  •  posthole
  •  posttranslational
  •  postbellum
  •  post-boost phase
  •  post chaise
  •  hitching post
  •  posthaste
  •  posttest
  •  post code
  •  postnasal
  •  posttransfusion
  •  crosspost
  •  postmaster
  •  postvocalic
  •  postindustrial
  •  postglacial
  •  postclassical
  •  postseason
  •  listening post
  •  postcolonial
  •  postexilic
  •  postsecular
  •  postscript
  •  post office
  •  postproduction
  •  post box
  •  postganglionic
  •  tool post
  •  post-op
  •  posthypnotic suggestion
  •  postdoc
  •  postmenopausal
  •  lamppost, lamp post
  •  postgasm
  •  postvertebral
  •  poststructuralism
  •  newel post
  •  postfrontal
  •  postpartum
  •  postpositive
  •  scratching post
  •  posterior
  •  gatepost
  •  sticky post
  •  postwoman
  •  bedpost
  •  king post
  •  postnatal
  •  postcoital
  •  postlux
  •  postmenstrual
  •  posttranscriptional
  •  post-horse
  •  postdiluvian
  •  postpone
  •  postcranial
  •  postmillenarian
  •  postlady
  •  post hole
  •  postoperative
  •  postimpressionism
  •  post-nasal drip
  •  posthumous
  •  postman
  •  postprandial
  •  postmodern
  •  postgraduate
  •  postdoctoral
  •  postdate
  •  postmortem
  •  postnuptial
  •  postidentity
  •  posttraumatic
  •  postmillennialism
  •  goalpost
  •  postfix
  •  postposition
  •  post-house
  •  staging post
  •  posttenebras
  •  signpost
  •  post-haste
  •  postmillenarianism
  •  postmeridian
  •  postsynaptic
  •  postembryonic
  •  outpost
  •  doorpost
  •  post bag
  •  first post
  •  postgirl
  •  postaxia

What is the origin of the word post?

According to Etymonline, the word post has been used since Middle English and Old English. This word comes from the Latin pōnere, Latin postis and Latin posita. Cognates include the Greek pastas colonnade, the French poste, the Italian poste, Italian posto, and Italian posta, as well as. the Old High German first ridgepole.

What are synonyms and antonyms of post?

There are many different words that a person can use in place of the word post. These are called synonyms, which are words and phrases that have the same definition as another given word or phrase. Synonyms are a great way to expand your English language vocabulary and avoid repeating yourself. This list of synonyms for the word post is provided by Power Thesaurus

  •  outpost
  •  vacancy
  •  put
  •  military post
  •  piece of timber
  •  marker
  •  pillar box
  •  postal service
  •  set upright
  •  posting
  •  appointment
  •  function
  •  location
  •  strut
  •  piling
  •  airmail
  •  assignment
  •  transmit
  •  dispatch
  •  pale
  •  report
  •  send off
  •  postal
  •  vocation
  •  site
  •  mail
  •  posted
  •  display
  •  prop
  •  stakes
  •  put up
  •  snail mail
  •  calling
  •  pole
  •  affix
  •  set
  •  seat
  •  jamb
  •  establish
  •  deploy
  •  positions
  •  mailed
  •  carry
  •  shaft
  •  enter
  •  pillar
  •  announce
  •  spot
  •  broadcast
  •  make known
  •  role
  •  email
  •  base
  •  opening
  •  ship
  •  pilaster
  •  situate
  •  bollard
  •  fasten
  •  correspondence
  •  pier
  •  charge
  •  station
  •  record
  •  capacity
  •  billet
  •  stake
  •  berth
  •  place
  •  picket
  •  mailing
  •  employment
  •  baluster
  •  stanchion
  •  office
  •  situation
  •  attach
  •  column
  •  publicize
  •  locate
  •  pile
  •  profession
  •  garrison
  •  brace
  •  work
  •  stick
  •  send
  •  letters
  •  career
  •  duty
  •  brand
  •  support
  •  upright
  •  position
  •  forward
  •  job
  •  courier
  •  mast
  •  paling
  •  occupation
  •  letter
  •  staff
  •  issue
  •  publish

There are also many different words that have the opposite meaning as the word post. These opposite words are called antonyms, which are opposite words to synonyms. These words contain the opposite meaning of a given word or phrase. This list of antonyms for the word post is also provided by Power Thesaurus

  •  be slow
  •  loiter
  •  beat one’s meat
  •  delay
  •  breather
  •  blow hot and cold
  •  breathing space
  •  fritter time away
  •  act slowly
  •  potter round
  •  beat your meat
  •  hide from
  •  potter
  •  bottle up
  •  maintain
  •  crawl
  •  bimble
  •  be leisurely
  •  idle
  •  shilly-shally
  •  lag
  •  tarry
  •  fall behind
  •  preserve
  •  dilly-dally
  •  dally
  •  procrastinate
  •  kill time
  •  suppress
  •  withhold
  •  beat the meat
  •  dawdle
  •  potter around
  •  waste time
  •  take your time
  •  walk slowly
  •  go slowly
  •  drag one’s feet
  •  have time
  •  bury
  •  aftercare
  •  drag one’s heels
  •  hang fire
  •  potter about
  •  linger
  •  stall
  •  abide
  •  mark time
  •  amble
  •  take one’s time
  •   keep secret from
  •  receive a mail
  •  move at a snail’s pace
  •  moonlighting
  •  move slowly
  •  period of relaxation
  •  lock up
  •  receive
  •  pause
  •  not keep pace
  •  put out of sight from
  •  keep dark
  •  proceed in a leisurely fashion
  •  not hurry
  •  put in a hiding place
  •  leisure
  •  keep the lid on
  •  mooch
  •  pootle
  •  pussyfoot around
  •  play a waiting game
  •  keep a lid on
  •  knock out of place
  •  post-work years
  •  mope
  •  part-time employment
  •  poke
  •  recess
  •  lag behind
  •  part-time job
  •  move
  •  put out of place
  •  keep hidden from
  •  period of repose
  •  keep quiet about
  •  redundancy
  •  lollygag
  •  mess up
  •  move out of place
  •  lie-down
  •  keep out of sight from
  •  kip
  •  maintenance
  •  mosey
  •  pick up a mail
  •  not worry about future
  •  knock out of position
  •  no place
  •  keep under one’s hat
  •  loiter along

Overall, the word post means many different things. This word can be used in many different other compound words and it can also be used as a noun or verb in numerous different contexts. 

Sources:

  1. post: meaning, origin, translation | Word Sense 
  2. Post synonyms – 2 997 Words and Phrases for Post | Power Thesaurus 
  3. Post antonyms – 360 Opposites of Post | Power Thesaurus  
  4. post | Origin and meaning of post | Online Etymology Dictionary 
  5. Post definition and meaning | Collins English Dictionary