glove compartment

American  

noun

1. a compartment in the dashboard of an automobile for storing small items.

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glove compartment British  

noun

1. a small compartment in a car dashboard for the storage of miscellaneous articles

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Etymology

Origin of glove compartment

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

But the graying signal caller still had something left in the glove compartment, and if you think I typed that while speaking in a stentorian John Facenda voice, I absolutely did.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 5, 2026

No more scrolling through your phone to find that bar code, or scrambling through your glove compartment to find that parking pass.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 29, 2025

The body camera footage shows an exchange that became more tense when Ms. Heard let the officers know that she had a gun locked in her glove compartment.

From New York Times • Aug. 4, 2023

When trying to figure out how the gun he keeps locked in his glove compartment got in his bookbag, Waddell realized he’d taken it out when he took the vehicle in for repairs.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 19, 2023

We get up and walk down the hill to our cars, and when she takes off, I open a notebook and grab a pen from my glove compartment.

From "Ask the Passengers" by A.S. King