"Postage stamp" word choice I have two words that I think mean the same thing: - - stamp (postage)/merchandise certificate - - postage stamp When I look at some sample sentences, the first one is used for both stamp and check. While the second one has no sample sentences but the Kanji makes a lot more sense. - "Mail Ticket"; - "cut hand" So how would I use both? I feel that would be used to describe stamps of any kind while can only be used for postage stamps. Am I on the right track?

Postage stamps are usually called . Strictly speaking, can refer to other kinds of certificates of payment, and postage stamps are more formally called , but almost always refer to postage stamps.

I had never heard of the word , and judging from a quick search on the web, I think that this word is used almost only in the legal community.

* * *

Answering to your question in the comment: _What is the etymology of the word_ ?

According to , a website explaining the etymology of various Japanese words, was originally an abbreviation for , where both and means certificates of payment. literally means something like “paper to cut” (imagine a train ticket) and literally means “shape of hand” (because handprint was used as a signature). In the modern Japanese, means ticket and means either handprint or specific kinds of security.