poor box

American  

noun

1. a box, especially in a church, into which contributions for people in need can be dropped.

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poor box British  

noun

1. a box, esp one in a church, used for the collection of alms or money for the poor

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Etymology

Origin of poor box

First recorded in 1615–25

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

poor box

The unit was also hurt by the poor box office performance of “Suicide Squad.”

From Los Angeles Times ● May 9, 2024

Anyway, that's the gist of Disney's latest animated release, which, as you may have heard, had a stunningly poor box office showing across Thanksgiving weekend.

From Salon ● Dec. 2, 2022

Greenlee said that after three weeks in release, during which F.B.I. agents hounded exhibitors to pull the film, UA withdrew it from circulation, citing poor box office grosses.

From New York Times ● Sep. 18, 2020

With the recent Fantastic Four reboot’s poor box office performance, a lot of people are wondering if superhero fatigue is setting in.

From Time ● Aug. 20, 2015

Underneath his thin guayabera, I could see the muscles of his broad shoulders shifting as he reached down and gave me a wad of bills to put in the poor box as his donation.

From "In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez