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• box office
  box office

  noun

  the office of a theater, stadium, or the like, at which tickets are sold.
• box-office
  box-office

  adjective

  of or relating to the box office or to the business and commercial aspects of the theater.

box office

¹ American  

noun

box offices plural

1. the office of a theater, stadium, or the like, at which tickets are sold.

2. Theater.

   1. receipts from a play or other entertainment.

   2. entertainment popular enough to attract paying audiences and make a profit.

      This show will be good box office.

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box-office ² American  

[boks-aw-fis, -of-is] / ˈbɒksˌɔ fɪs, -ˌɒf ɪs /

adjective

1. of or relating to the box office or to the business and commercial aspects of the theater.

   a box-office window; box-office receipts; a box-office attraction.

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box office British  

noun

1. an office at a theatre, cinema, etc, where tickets are sold

2. the receipts from a play, film, etc

3. 1. the public appeal of an actor or production

      the musical was bad box office

   2. ( as modifier )

      a box-office success

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box office Idioms  

1. The office where seats for a play, concert, or other form of entertainment may be purchased, as in Tickets are available at the box office . It is so called because originally (17th century) it was the place for hiring a box, a special compartment of theater seats set aside for ladies. [Second half of 1700s]

2. The financial receipts from a performance; also, a show's relative success in attracting a paying audience. For example, You may not consider it great art, but this play is good box office . [c. 1900]

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• box offices
  plural

Etymology

Origin of box office¹

First recorded in 1780–90

Origin of box-office²

First recorded in 1805–15; adj. use of box office

Example Sentences

Not all superhero movies are destined to conquer the box office.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 25, 2026

The 44-year-old actor -- coming off a banner year of awards for his Hollywood satire "The Studio" -- said relationships are always box office gold because "it's high stakes, very personal, very relatable."

From Barron's • Jun. 25, 2026

But some of the storied studio's more recent titles, like the alien adventure Elio and Toy Story spin-off Lightyear, have bombed at the box office.

From BBC • Jun. 22, 2026

Overall box office revenues have declined since the Covid-19 pandemic, as studios struggled to draw people back to cinemas as the industry has seen a shift towards streaming services like Netflix and Disney+.

From BBC • Jun. 22, 2026

That's what one says at the box office when ordering a ticket, and I say it quite well.

From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris

Related Words

• gate