[bounce message]

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bounce message n.

[common] Notification message returned to sender by a site unable to relay [email] to the intended [Internet address] recipient or the next link in a [bang path] (see [bounce], sense 1). Reasons might include a nonexistent or misspelled username or a [down] relay site. Bounce messages can themselves fail, with occasionally ugly results; see [sorcerer's apprentice mode] and [software laser]. The terms `bounce mail' and `barfmail' are also common.