box

[ boks ]

/ bɒks /

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See synonyms for: box / boxed / boxes / boxing on Thesaurus.com

noun

a container, case, or receptacle, usually rectangular, of wood, metal, cardboard, etc., and often with a lid or removable cover.

the quantity contained in a box: She bought a box of candy as a gift.

Chiefly British. a gift or present: a Christmas box.

post office box.

a compartment or section in a public place, shut or railed off for the accommodation of a small number of people, especially in a theater, opera house, sports stadium, etc.

a small enclosure or area in a courtroom, for witnesses or the jury.

a small shelter: a sentry's box.

British.

a small house, cabin, or cottage, as for use while hunting: a shooting box.
a telephone booth.
a wardrobe trunk.

box stall.

the driver's seat on a coach.

the section of a wagon in which passengers or parcels are carried.

Automotive. the section of a truck in which cargo is carried.

the box, Informal. television: Are there any good shows on the box tonight?

part of a page of a newspaper or periodical set off in some manner, as by lines, a border, or white space.

any enclosing, protective case or housing, sometimes including its contents: a gear box; a fire-alarm box.

Baseball.

either of two marked spaces, one on each side of the plate, in which the batter stands.
either of two marked spaces, one outside of first base and the other outside of third, where the coaches stand.
the pitcher's mound.
the marked space where the catcher stands.

a difficult situation; predicament.

Agriculture. a bowl or pit cut in the side of a tree for collecting sap.

Jazz Slang.

a stringed instrument, as a guitar.
a piano.

Informal.

a phonograph.
a boom box.
a computer.

Slang. a coffin.

Slang: Vulgar.

the vulva or vagina.
basket (def. 9).

verb (used with object)

to put into a box: She boxed the glassware before the movers came.

to enclose or confine as in a box (often followed by in or up).

to furnish with a box.

to form into a box or the shape of a box.

to block so as to keep from passing or achieving better position (often followed by in): The Ferrari was boxed in by two other cars on the tenth lap.

to group together for consideration as one unit: to box bills in the legislature.

Building Trades. to enclose or conceal (a building or structure) as with boarding.

Agriculture. to make a hole or cut in (a tree) for sap to collect.

to mix (paint, varnish, or the like) by pouring from one container to another and back again.

Australian.

to mix groups of sheep that should be kept separated.
to confuse someone or something.

Verb Phrases

box out, Basketball. to position oneself between an opposing player and the basket to hinder the opposing player from rebounding or tipping in a shot; block out.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Idioms about box

out of the box, Australian Slang. remarkable or exceptional; extraordinary.

outside the box, Informal. in an innovative or unconventional manner; with a fresh perspective: You have to think outside the box and adapt those strategies to your business.Also out of the box .

Origin of box

First recorded before 1000; Middle English, Old English, probably from Late Latin buxis, a reshaping of Latin pyxis; see boîte, pyx

OTHER WORDS FROM box

boxlike, adjective

Words nearby box

bow window, bowwood, bowwow, bowyangs, bowyer, box, boxball, box beam, box bed, boxberry, boxboard

Other definitions for box (2 of 4)

box²

[ boks ]

/ bɒks /

verb (used with object)

to fight against (someone) in a boxing match.

to strike with the hand or fist, especially on the ear.

verb (used without object)

to fight with the fists; participate in a boxing match; spar.

to be a professional or experienced prizefighter or boxer: He has boxed since he was 16.

noun

a blow, as with the hand or fist: He gave the boy a box on his ear.

Origin of box

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English box “a blow,” boxen “to beat,” of uncertain origin

Other definitions for box (3 of 4)

box³

[ boks ]

/ bɒks /

noun

an evergreen shrub or small tree of the genus Buxus, especially B. sempervirens, having shiny, elliptic, dark-green leaves, used for ornamental borders, hedges, etc., and yielding a hard, durable wood.

the wood itself.

any of various other shrubs or trees, especially species of eucalyptus.

Compare boxwood.

Origin of box

First recorded before 950; Middle English, Old English, from Latin buxus “boxwood,” from Greek pýxos

Other definitions for box (4 of 4)

box⁴

[ boks ]

/ bɒks /

verb (used with object)

Nautical. to boxhaul (often followed by off).

Meteorology. to fly around the center of a storm in a boxlike pattern in order to gather meteorological data: to box a storm.

Origin of box

⁴

First recorded in 1745–55; probably from Spanish bojar “to sail around,” earlier boxar, perhaps from Catalan vogir “to (cause to) turn,” ultimately derived from Latin volvere (see revolve); influenced by box¹ (verb)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use box in a sentence

A very lightweight option at only one pound, the Pendaflex file box is by far the most easily transportable.
Great filing cabinets for your home office|PopSci Commerce Team|September 17, 2020|Popular-Science
We don’t have to box ourselves in to our present limitations.
Dawn of the Heliocene - Issue 90: Something Green|Summer Praetorius|September 16, 2020|Nautilus
It’s thinking outside the box and using the current technology that we already have.
Malala Yousafzai tells the business community: Education is the best way to guard against future crises|Michal Lev-Ram, writer|September 15, 2020|Fortune
It also includes a USB-C to USB-C charging cable in the box.
Grab a recommended 90W charger for your phone, Switch, and laptop for $43|Ars Staff|September 11, 2020|Ars Technica

Variety reported that box office revenue in South Korea was down 30 to 40 percent in January 2020 compared to previous years.
How the coronavirus outbreak is roiling the film and entertainment industries|Alissa Wilkinson|September 11, 2020|Vox
In response to the screen quota cut, South Korea established a “cinema tax” on the box office.
Propaganda, Protest, and Poisonous Vipers: The Cinema War in Korea|Rich Goldstein|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He goes into some detail into what it took to persuade voters to pass marriage equality at the ballot box in four states in 2012.
The Real Story Behind the Fight for Marriage Equality|E.J. Graff|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
How to Train Your Dragon 2, the tenth highest grossing movie in 2014 America, made $22 million at the Korean box office.
Propaganda, Protest, and Poisonous Vipers: The Cinema War in Korea|Rich Goldstein|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
By 2012, the marriage equality movement had won in courts and legislatures—but not at the ballot box.
The Real Story Behind the Fight for Marriage Equality|E.J. Graff|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
That November, many of us were stunned as voters in four states supported marriage equality at the ballot box.
The Real Story Behind the Fight for Marriage Equality|E.J. Graff|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Beside her was a box of bonbons, which she held out at intervals to Madame Ratignolle.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin
Now and then the boy who had bought Squinty, and who was taking him home, would look around at his pet in the slatted box.
Squinty the Comical Pig|Richard Barnum
The little pig in the box felt himself being lifted out of the wagon.
Squinty the Comical Pig|Richard Barnum
Mrs. Newbolt was cutting splints for her new sun-bonnet out of a pasteboard box.
The Bondboy|George W. (George Washington) Ogden
With a hammer the boy knocked off some of the slats of the small box in which Squinty had made his journey.
Squinty the Comical Pig|Richard Barnum

British Dictionary definitions for box (1 of 3)

box¹

/ (bɒks) /

noun

a receptacle or container made of wood, cardboard, etc, usually rectangular and having a removable or hinged lid

Also called: boxful the contents of such a receptacle or the amount it can containhe ate a whole box of chocolates

any of various containers for a specific purposea money box; letter box

(often in combination) any of various small cubicles, kiosks, or sheltersa telephone box or callbox; a sentry box; a signal box on a railway

a separate compartment in a public place for a small group of people, as in a theatre or certain restaurants

an enclosure within a courtroomSee jury box, witness box

a compartment for a horse in a stable or a vehicleSee loosebox, horsebox

British a small country house occupied by sportsmen when following a field sport, esp shooting

a protective housing for machinery or mechanical parts
the contents of such a box
(in combination)a gearbox

a shaped device of light tough material worn by sportsmen to protect the genitals, esp in cricket

a section of printed matter on a page, enclosed by lines, a border, or white space

a central agency to which mail is addressed and from which it is collected or redistributeda post-office box; to reply to a box number in a newspaper advertisement

the central part of a computer or the casing enclosing it

short for penalty box

baseball either of the designated areas in which the batter may stand

the raised seat on which the driver sits in a horse-drawn coach

NZ a wheeled container for transporting coal in a mine

Australian and NZ an accidental mixing of herds or flocks

a hole cut into the base of a tree to collect the sap

short for Christmas box

a device for dividing water into two or more ditches in an irrigation system

an informal name for a coffin

taboo, slang the female genitals

be a box of birds NZ to be very well indeed

the box British informal television

think outside the box or think out of the box to think in a different, innovative, or original manner, esp with regard to business practices, products, systems, etc

tick all the boxes to satisfy all of the apparent requirements for success

out of the box Australian informal outstanding or excellenta day out of the box

verb

(tr) to put into a box

(tr ; usually foll by in or up) to prevent from moving freely; confine

(tr foll by in) printing to enclose (text) within a ruled frame

(tr) to make a cut in the base of (a tree) in order to collect the sap

(tr) Australian and NZ to mix (flocks or herds) accidentally

(tr sometimes foll by up) NZ to confuseI am all boxed up

nautical short for boxhaul

box the compass nautical to name the compass points in order

Derived forms of box

boxlike, adjective

Word Origin for box

Old English box, from Latin buxus from Greek puxos box ³

British Dictionary definitions for box (2 of 3)

box²

/ (bɒks) /

verb

(tr) to fight (an opponent) in a boxing match

(intr) to engage in boxing

(tr) to hit (a person) with the fist; punch or cuff

box clever to behave in a careful and cunning way

noun

a punch with the fist, esp on the ear

Word Origin for box

C14: of uncertain origin; perhaps related to Dutch boken to shunt, push into position

British Dictionary definitions for box (3 of 3)

box³

/ (bɒks) /

noun

a dense slow-growing evergreen tree or shrub of the genus Buxus, esp B. sempervirens, which has small shiny leaves and is used for hedges, borders, and garden mazes: family Buxaceae

the wood of this treeSee boxwood (def. 1)

any of several trees the timber or foliage of which resembles this tree, esp various species of Eucalyptus with rough bark

Word Origin for box

Old English, from Latin buxus

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with box

box

In addition to the idioms beginning with box

box office
box score
box the compass

also see:

in a bind (box)
on one's soapbox
pandora's box
stuff the ballot box

box

Idioms about box

Origin of box

OTHER WORDS FROM box

Words nearby box

Other definitions for box (2 of 4)

Origin of box

Other definitions for box (3 of 4)

Origin of box

Other definitions for box (4 of 4)

Origin of box

Words related to box

How to use box in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for box (1 of 3)

Derived forms of box

Word Origin for box

British Dictionary definitions for box (2 of 3)

Word Origin for box

British Dictionary definitions for box (3 of 3)

Word Origin for box

Other Idioms and Phrases with box