envois

Envoi is a French noun meaning the act of sending or the thing sent. The plural envois refers to items that have been sent, such as letters, packages, or shipments. In postal and logistics contexts, an envoi denotes a shipment or consignment delivered to a recipient; businesses may track envois and their status. In everyday French, envoi can cover any sending, but for a single package the terms colis or paquet are also common.

In literature, envoi has a distinct sense as well: a short concluding stanza added to a poem or ballad, often addressed to a patron, recipient, or reader. The device originated in medieval French poetry and was adopted into English-language poetics as “envoi.” Such stanzas are typically brief and may name the author and place of composition, or provide a farewell or dedication.

Etymology: envoi derives from the verb envoyer, meaning to send; the noun form envoi has long been used to describe the act or thing sent. The plural envois is standard in French.

Usage notes: When discussing logistics, envoi refers to a shipment; in literary contexts, envoi refers to the concluding stanza. In English, the term is usually restricted to literary usage, whereas in French it remains common for ordinary shipments as well. The word reflects the core meaning of sending and receiving across both practical and poetic languages.