Crossword clues for philately
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Philately \Phi*lat"e*ly\, n. [Philo- + Gr. ? exemption from tax; cf. frank to send free.] The collection of postage stamps of various issues.
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
"stamp-collecting," 1865, from French philatélie, coined by French stamp collector Georges Herpin (in "Le Collectionneur de Timbres-poste," Nov. 15, 1864), from Greek phil- "loving" (see philo-) + ateleia "exemption from tax," the closest word Herpin could find in ancient Greek to the concept of "postage stamp" (from a- "without" + telos "tax;" see toll (n.)). A reminder of the original function of postage stamps, now often forgotten: the cost of letter-carrying formerly was paid by the recipient; stamps indicated it had been pre-paid by the sender, thus the letters were "carriage-free."\n\nIt is a pity that for one of the most popular scientific pursuits one of the least popularly intelligible names should have been found. [Fowler]\nStampomania (1865) also was tried. Stamp-collecting is from 1862.\nRelated: Philatelic; philatelism; philatelist.
Wiktionary
n. 1 stamp collecting. 2 The study of postage stamps, postal routes, postal history, etc.
WordNet
n. the collection and study of postage stamps [syn: stamp collecting, stamp collection]
Wikipedia
Philately is the study of stamps and postal history and other related items. It also refers to the collection, appreciation and research activities on stamps and other philatelic products. Philately involves more than just stamp collecting, which does not necessarily involve the study of stamps. It is possible to be a philatelist without owning any stamps. For instance, the stamps being studied may be very rare, or reside only in museums.
Usage examples of "philately".
Captain Bruc looked at Philately, who was still flustered and continually glanced over her shoulder.
Captain Philately was in front of her, again looking her directly in the eyes.
The thief spotted it easily enough, realized I was not the philately expert, and gave me this.
I dredged up what I could remember of half-heard philately lectures from Dad.
Probyn Pybus was a philatelist, but with Sir Probyn philately was rather the hobby of a man who had spent his life in acquiring material things, and who was nearing the end of his possibilities.
X is a rather dreary little Soviet-fan who combines philately with communism, and is pretty nippy with the darts.
If all they wanted was an excuse to serve drinks when the pubs were shut, Kevin thought, they could surely have found something more credible, like philately or model railways.