Definition of "philately" [phi•lat•e•ly]

• The collection and study of postage stamps, postmarks, and related materials; stamp collecting. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "This fascination with stamps and the history that surrounds them has led to a hobby related to philately, which is collecting stamps."
• "I speak of stamp collecting, more properly known as philately, and it was the American Philatelic Society (APS) that took over a fair amount of space in the Greater Richmond Convention Center and adjacent Richmond Marriott hotel in mid-August to promote the hobby's message."
• "The group, formed in 1957, consists of 11 members in fields ranging from sports and design to sociology and "philately," or the study of stamps."