bottom drawer

American  

[drawr] / drɔr /

noun

British.

1. any drawer used for a hope chest.

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bottom drawer British  

noun

1. US and Canadian equivalent: hope chest.  a young woman's collection of clothes, linen, cutlery, etc, in anticipation of marriage

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Etymology

Origin of bottom drawer

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

"I don't want it to be a doorstop or in the bottom drawer, I want it to be on the mantelpiece."

From BBC • Nov. 19, 2025

The bottom drawer is for protein, which is good to put on the bottom because if anything drips it’s not going to cross-contaminate anything.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 15, 2023

I thought, “Yeah, you’ve got a script in the bottom drawer somewhere. Come on, you’re just not telling me what you want to do with the guy.”

From New York Times • Jul. 14, 2023

The heart-stories behind the mailboxes are discreetly pasted, painted, hammered and welded into their forms like love letters secreted into the false bottom drawer of a writing desk.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 14, 2023

Finn switched to yanking on the bottom drawer.

From "The Strangers" by Margaret Peterson Haddix