box

noun

ˈbäks 

plural boxes

1

: a rigid typically rectangular container with or without a cover

a cardboard box

a pizza box

kitty's litter box

: such as

a

: an open cargo container of a vehicle

b

: coffin

2

: the contents of a box especially as a measure of quantity

added a box of spaghetti to the water

3

: an often small space, compartment, or enclosure: such as

a

: an enclosed group of seats for spectators (as in a theater or stadium)

b

: the usually enclosed place where the jury sits in a courtroom

c

: a cell for holding mail

d

: penalty box

e

: a driver's seat on a carriage or coach

f

British : box stall

4

: a box or boxlike container and its contents: such as

a

: a usually self-contained piece of electronic equipment

b

: television

c

: a signaling apparatus

alarm box

d

: an automobile transmission

e

British : a gift in a box

f

: boom box

5

: a usually rectangular space that is frequently outlined or demarcated on a surface: such as

a

: a space on a page for printed matter or in which to make a mark

b

: any of six spaces on a baseball diamond where the batter, coaches, pitcher, and catcher stand

c

: the intersection of two roads especially when treated as an area where vehicles are prohibited from stopping because doing so would interfere with traffic flow

Don't block the box.

6

: the limitations of conventionality

trying to think outside the box [=come up with ideas that are creative and unusual]

7

: a cubical building

8

British : cup sense 5b

I like to use a pair of trousers which have a lot more room in them so that they give me far more freedom of movement. They also make it easier to put in a thigh pad and box.

—Glenn Turner

9

: predicament, fix

How did we get into this box?

boxful

ˈbäks-fu̇l 

noun

plural boxfuls

boxlike

ˈbäks-ˌlīk 

adjective

Synonyms of box

• bin
• locker
• trunk
• chest

Examples of box in a Sentence

filled a whole box with books

the only way I'm ever leaving this hospital room is in a box

would you switch on the box so that we can watch the news?

with our new home still unfinished, and the buyers of our condo eager to move in, we were in a real box

Recent Examples on the Web

The department also operates Brinc Lemur S units for indoor tactical situations and the autonomous DJI Box 3 with Matrice 4TD — a drone-in-a-box platform that is programmed to launch, navigate and return to base entirely on its own. —Walker Armstrong, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 June 2026

Near the back of Hometown Kountry Marketplace in Maumelle lurked a pyramid of pre-packaged Amazon mystery boxes with the come-hither price of $55. —Arkansas Online, 7 June 2026

The packs of 100 were sold in boxes of 800. —David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 7 June 2026

With its wrinkle-free fabric and breezy silhouette, this comfy T-shirt dress checks every box. —Emily Weaver, PEOPLE, 7 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English, from Late Latin buxis, from Greek pyxis, from pyxos box tree

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing box

• ballot box
• big-box
• black box
• blind box
• boom box
• box braid
• box camera
• box coat
• box cutter
• box elder
• box in
• box jelly
• box jellyfish
• box junction
• box kite
• box lunch
• box office
• box pleat
• box room
• box score
• box seat
• box set
• box social
• box someone's ears
• box spring
• box stall
• box turtle
• bread box
• cable box
• call box
• check box
• chocolate-box
• dealing box
• dialog box
• ditty box
• dough box
• fuse box
• glove box
• idiot box
• in-box
• jack-in-the-box
• jewel box
• journal box
• letter box
• litter box
• live-box
• loose box
• lunch box
• luxury box
• miter box
• money box
• musical box
• music box
• open a Pandora's box
• out-box
• Pandora's box
• penalty box
• phone box
• pillar-box
• poor box
• post office box
• pouncet-box
• press box
• ready box
• safe-deposit box
• sentry box
• service box
• set-top box
• shadow box
• shoe box
• Skinner box
• sound box
• squawk box
• stuffing box
• stuff the ballot box
• swell box
• telephone box
• the box
• voice box
• window box
• witness-box

Rhymes for box

• balks
• blocks
• blocs
• chalks
• chocks
• clocks
• cocks
• cox
• crocks
• docks
• docs
• flocks

Kids Definition

box

1 of 5 noun

ˈbäks 

plural box or boxes

: an evergreen shrub or small tree used especially for hedges

box

2 of 5 noun

1

a

: a container usually having four sides, a bottom, and a cover

b

: the amount held by a box

ate a whole box of popcorn

2

: a small compartment for a group of spectators in a theater

3

: the driver's seat on a carriage

4

: a shed that protects

5

: a container (as for a car transmission) that resembles a box

6

: a rectangle which encloses and draws attention to something printed

7

: a space on a baseball diamond where a batter, coach, pitcher, or catcher stands

8

: the limits of ordinariness

thinking outside the box

box

3 of 5 verb

: to enclose in or as if in a box

box

4 of 5 noun

: a punch or slap especially on the ear

box

5 of 5 verb

1

: to strike with the hand

2

: to engage in boxing : fight with the fists

Etymology

Old English box "box (shrub)," from Latin buxus (same meaning), from Greek pyxos "box tree"

Old English box "container," from Latin buxis (same meaning), from Greek pyxis, literally, "a container made from boxwood"

Middle English box "a blow or slap on the ear"