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Noun

In the 17th century, the word band was sometimes used for ruffs, the large round collars of pleated muslin or linen worn by men and women of the time period, and the bandbox was invented for holding such bands. The flimsy cardboard structure of the box inspired people to start using its name for any flimsy object, especially a small and insubstantial one. But people also contemplated the neat, sharp appearance of ruffs just taken from a bandbox and began using the word in a complimentary way in phrases such as "she looked as if she came out of a bandbox." Today, "bandbox" can also be used as an adjective meaning "exquisitely neat, clean, or ordered," as in "bandbox military officers."

Examples of bandbox in a Sentence

Adjective a small bandbox bed-and-breakfast decorated with taste and charm

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun The game was held in Benet’s Alumni Gym, a bandbox that dates to the 1950s. — Matt Le Cren, chicagotribune.com, 18 Jan. 2022 The changes certainly won’t turn PK Park into a bandbox but the extreme edge for pitchers, particularly in the early spring, will be lessened. — James Crepea | The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, 26 Jan. 2022 This state’s first-ever regular season Major League Baseball game is set for Thursday, but with just a week to go workers were still assembling the ballpark, an 8,000-seat bandbox carved out of the world’s most famous cornfield. — Lamond Pope, chicagotribune.com, 13 Aug. 2021 Oregon and Central Connecticut State turned pitcher-friendly PK Park into a bandbox to start NCAA regional play. — James Crepea | The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, 4 June 2021 The new park is far from the bandbox Rosenblatt was. — Gabe Lacques, USA TODAY, 19 June 2020 The Lake Placid arena was an 8,000-seat bandbox shaped like a cockfighting amphitheater. — Gerald Eskenazi, New York Times, 21 Feb. 2020 The bad news for any team hankering to take swings in that bandbox is, well, [gestures at the section about Verlander and Cole and Greinke]. — Jon Tayler, SI.com, 26 Sep. 2019 When Radford played at Charleston Southern during Green’s junior year, the bandbox of a gym was packed with students, including a group of football players in the front row who were talented hecklers. — BostonGlobe.com, 10 Oct. 2019 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bandbox.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.