Meaning & use
parcel
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Meanings
nouncountableBritish
Something wrapped up for sending by mail or carrying.
Grammar: Common in British English; Americans often say package.
Patterns
- send a parcel
- a parcel for someone
A parcel arrived for you this morning.
She wrapped the parcel in brown paper.
The courier left a parcel on the doorstep.
nouncountablelegal
A piece of land that is part of a bigger area and owned or sold separately.
Grammar: Used in law and property: a parcel of land.
Patterns
- a parcel of land
The developer bought a parcel of land by the river.
A small parcel was left over after the sale.
Each parcel must be surveyed before purchase.
verbtransitive
To wrap something up or divide it into portions.
Grammar: Takes an object, often with up or out: parcel out the food.
Patterns
- parcel something up
- parcel something out
He parceled up the old books for the charity shop.
The estate was parceled out among the heirs.
She parceled the cookies into small bags.
nounfixed phrase
A group or set of things considered together, as in part and parcel.
Grammar: Found in the idiom part and parcel of something.
Patterns
- part and parcel of something
Long hours are part and parcel of the job.
Setbacks are part and parcel of learning.
Noise is part and parcel of living in the city.
Word forms
| plural | parcels |
|---|---|
| third person singular | parcels |
| past tense | parceled |
| -ing form | parceling |
Common combinations
- send a parcel
- I need to send a parcel to my sister.
- parcel of land
- They own a large parcel of land.
- part and parcel
- Deadlines are part and parcel of journalism.
- parcel post
- The books went by parcel post.
- collect a parcel
- You can collect your parcel at the depot.
- parcel out
- The teacher parceled out the work among the groups.
Synonyms and how they differ
- package
- Package is the usual American word for a wrapped item, and can also mean a bundle of offers.
- packet
- Packet is smaller and often means a small container of goods.
- plot
- Plot means a small piece of land, especially one for building or gardening.
- bundle
- Bundle suggests items tied together, not necessarily wrapped for mailing.
Word family
- parcel post noun
- a postal service for parcels
- parceling noun
- the act of dividing into portions
- parcel bomb noun
- an explosive sent in a package
Commonly confused: parcel or partial?
parcel vs partial
Partial means incomplete and has no link to a parcel, though both come from the idea of a part.
Practice
Complaints about travel delays are part and ___ of working for an airline.
Choose one answer.
Part and parcel is a fixed idiom meaning an essential part. The other nouns do not fit the idiom.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “parcel”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.