Define post haste

English Dictionary.

Add to word list Add to word list. They traveled posthaste to Rome to collect the award. Fast and rapid. Examples of posthaste. The clear solution was to remove these lower-class youths from the streets posthaste. From Slate Magazine. It should be coming posthaste.

Define post haste

As an adverb, posthaste means "with all possible speed. Burns, making a rare venture out into the world in his horseless carriage without Smithers, commands to Marge : "You there, fill it up with petroleum distillate, and re-vulcanize my tires, posthaste! Even when posthaste is used in contemporary journalism—in the same contexts in which one might see the initialism ASAP or the hospital jargon stat —there is often a wink accompanying it:. These brownies are nutty and a little savory, with an aroma so intoxicating, you may find that your nose constantly gravitates towards the pan, pulling the rest of your head with it. If you like tahini desserts or sweet sesame treats, you should make sesame oil brownies posthaste. If you didn't already know the etymology of posthaste , you might see the post at the beginning of the word and assume that it's functioning as a prefix meaning "after," the way it does in Latin words like postmortem , or in English words like postgame or postgraduate , or in movements of art or critical theory like postmodernism or post-structuralism. Not quite. The post in posthaste is the same as in post office : it has to do with the mail. In Middle English, post haste was a noun for the speed with which a person delivering mail was pressed to do their job. In the 16th century "haste, post, haste" was used to inform couriers also called posts that a letter was urgent. Post-haste later came to refer to great promptness and speed for any purpose, and was used in phrases like in post-haste and in all post-haste. In other words, the work of a courier was so routinely associated with speed and efficiency that it was used as a reference point in the language for others doing speedy labors. The notion caught on so quickly that post-haste was seeing use as an adjective and adverb by the end of the 16th century. The modern U. The association of courier service with speed and promptness occurs throughout a lot of popular culture, from the character Mr.

He sent posthaste for reinforcements. Translations Click on the arrows to change the translation direction.

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Define post haste

There are three meanings listed in OED's entry for the word post-haste. OED's earliest evidence for post-haste is from , in the writing of Roger Ascham, author and royal tutor. Etymons: post n. Sign in with library card. Sign in as administrator on Oxford Academic. Revisions and additions of this kind were last incorporated into post-haste, n. Please include your email address if you are happy to be contacted about your feedback. OUP will not use this email address for any other purpose.

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These examples have been automatically selected and may contain sensitive content that does not reflect the opinions or policies of Collins, or its parent company HarperCollins. We have almost lists of words from topics as varied as types of butterflies, jackets, currencies, vegetables and knots! Quiz English grammar. English—German German—English. Posts would then speedily gallop along a route with a series of places at which to get a fresh horse or to relay the letter to a fresh messenger. Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free! Collins Conundrum. Italian to English. Video Build your vocabulary. We have almost lists of words from topics as varied as types of butterflies, jackets, currencies, vegetables and knots!

In the 16th century, the phrase "haste, post, haste" was used to inform posts as couriers were then called that a letter was urgent and must be hastily delivered. Posts would then speedily gallop along a route with a series of places at which to get a fresh horse or to relay the letter to a fresh messenger. William Shakespeare was one of the first to use a version of the phrase adverbially in Richard II.

Quiz German confusables. He sent posthaste for reinforcements. Mastering politeness in English: Harness the charm of 'please' and 'thank you' for positive and impactful communication. Learner's Dictionary: post-haste. English collocations. Articles Related to posthaste. Postgraduate Certificate in Education. Word lists shared by our community of dictionary fans. We celebrate St. Hindi to English. Quiz French confusables. English synonyms. Video Learn English. Teaching Resources.