Boxing Day

American

[bok-sing day] / ˈbɒk sɪŋ ˌdeɪ /

noun

(in the United Kingdom and many other members of the Commonwealth of Nations) the day after Christmas.

Boxing Day British

noun

the first day (traditionally and strictly, the first weekday) after Christmas, observed as a holiday

"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

Etymology

Origin of Boxing Day

First recorded in 1825–35

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Boxing Day

The Boxing Day tragedy was one of the deadliest natural disasters in recorded history.

From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026

On Christmas Eve 2022, her asked for £150 for a car tyre, telling her if she did not help him he wouldn't visit her on Boxing Day.

From BBC ● Mar. 13, 2026

Two days later, on Boxing Day, Grace, from High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, was placed in a coma.

From BBC ● Mar. 7, 2026

Christine Clark, 64, was hunting for fossils during a Boxing Day walk on Holy Island, Northumberland when something caught her eye.

From BBC ● Feb. 19, 2026

It was a regular Boxing Day Meet At the edge of the forest the last follower joined up.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023