firebox

[ fahyuh r-boks ]

/ ˈfaɪərˌbɒks /

noun

the box or chamber containing the fire of a steam boiler, furnace, etc.

the furnace of a locomotive, where coal, oil, or other fuel is burned to generate steam.

a box or panel with a device for notifying the fire station of an outbreak of fire.

Obsolete. a tinderbox.

Nearby words

firebird, firebird, the, fireboard, fireboat, firebomb, firebox, firebrand, firebrat, firebreak, firebrick, firebug

Origin of firebox

First recorded in 1545–55; fire + box¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for firebox

The shirt followed the leggings, after which, with a dull clanking of the stove lids, he covered the firebox.
The Rich Little Poor Boy|Eleanor Gates
As there is no firebox, the boiler is mounted above the axle, not by bolting a plate to the side of the firebox.
Farm Engines and How to Run Them|James H. Stephenson
He cooked himself an excellent supper, toasting bread and frankfurters in the firebox of the roller.
Where the Blue Begins|Christopher Morley
In a locomotive boiler the mud accumulates in the water leg, below the firebox.
Farm Engines and How to Run Them|James H. Stephenson

Beam axle of the engine is behind the firebox, and is a single solid steel shaft.
Farm Engines and How to Run Them|James H. Stephenson

British Dictionary definitions for firebox

firebox

/ (ˈfaɪəˌbɒks) /

noun

the furnace chamber of a boiler in a steam locomotive

an obsolete word for tinderbox

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