A phrase from historical newspaper personal ads, explained with real examples from the archive.
A formal way of asking someone to write: please communicate with box 150.
| Type | Historical phrase |
|---|---|
| Earliest example in the archive | February 15, 1880, Chicago Daily Tribune |
| Most common | 1870s to the 1920s |
Communicate kept things courteous and slightly distant. It asked for a letter, not a meeting, and let both sides decide from there. It appears in missed connections and in more serious notices, like a 1920 request that a woman once named Ella Mae Bowers communicate at once on a matter of grave importance.
PERSONAL—BALCONY, SEC. C, SATURDAY afternoon, Haverly's. If agreeable, will lady please communicate with gentleman on right? Address E 71, Tribune office.
WILL YOUNG LADY WHO WORE BOUQUET OF pink roses on navy-yard car, and got off at 8th and G sts. s.e., at 6 p.m. April 24th, communicate with gentleman who sat just in…
WILL the lady who occupied, with others, the second box from the stage on the right hand side of the second floor of the Tivoli, on the evening of Sunday, the 12th day…
WILL the young lady who before marriage bore the name of Ella Mae Bowers please communicate at once with the undersigned on matter of grave importance. Louis W. Denkler,…
IF YOU PLAY SKAT, communicate with Box 389-K, Star.
All dictionary entries · The Personals Archive · How to write a personal ad
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