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cupboard

American  
[kuhb-erd] / ˈkʌb ərd /

noun

  1. a closet with shelves for dishes, cups, etc.

  2. Chiefly British. any small closet or cabinet, as for clothes, food, or the like.

cupboard British  
/ ˈkʌbəd /

noun

  1. a piece of furniture or a recessed area of a room, with a door concealing storage space

"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 cupboard

First recorded in 1275–1325, cupboard is from the Middle English word cuppebord. See cup, board

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.

The divestment of its remaining food brands would be a milestone for a group that long championed holding pantry and bathroom staples in one corporate cupboard.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026

During a break, Mathiassen pulled a photo album from the cupboard.

From Barron's • Mar. 3, 2026

The cupboard originally began operating in 2020, and Stewart took it over in 2022 when she started working at the 750-pupil secondary school.

From BBC • Feb. 18, 2026

"It was being made in a cupboard about four in the morning, but it did OK – and then I got some funding to make the next one. "

From BBC • Jan. 22, 2026

It was this wretched room then—it was always dark in this little cupboard of a kitchen.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

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

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.