box

1 of 6

noun (1)

ˈbäks 

plural boxes

1

: a rigid typically rectangular container with or without a cover

a cigar 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

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

: a cell for holding mail

c

: penalty box

d

: a driver's seat on a carriage or coach

e

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

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

boxful

ˈbäks-fu̇l 

noun

plural boxfuls

boxlike

ˈbäks-ˌlīk 

adjective

box

2 of 6

verb (1)

boxed; boxing; boxes

transitive verb

1

: to enclose in or as if in a box

2

: to hem in (someone, such as an opponent)

—usually used with in, out, or up

boxed out the tackle

box

3 of 6

verb (2)

boxed; boxing; boxes

intransitive verb

: to fight with the fists : engage in boxing

transitive verb

1

: to hit (something, especially someone's ears) with the hand

2

: to engage in boxing with

box

4 of 6

noun (2)

: a punch or slap especially on the ear

box

5 of 6

noun (3)

plural box or boxes

: an evergreen shrub or small tree (genus Buxus of the family Buxaceae, the box family) with opposite entire leaves and capsular fruits

especially : a widely cultivated shrub (B. sempervirens) used for hedges, borders, and topiary figures

box

6 of 6

verb (3)

boxed; boxing; boxes

transitive verb

: to name the 32 points of (the compass) in their order

—used figuratively in the phrase box the compass to describe making a complete reversal

Synonyms

Noun (1)

• bin
• caddy
• case
• casket
• chest
• locker
• trunk

Verb (1)

• cage
• closet
• coop (up)
• corral
• encage
• encase
• enclose
• inclose
• envelop
• fence (in)
• hedge
• hem (in)
• house
• immure
• include
• mew (up)
• pen
• wall (in)

Verb (2)

• bang
• bash
• bat
• belt
• biff
• bludgeon
• bob
• bonk
• bop
• bust
• clap
• clip
• clobber
• clock
• clout
• crack
• hammer
• hit
• knock
• nail
• paste
• pound
• punch
• rap
• slam
• slap
• slog
• slug
• smack
• smite
• sock
• strike
• swat
• swipe
• tag
• thump
• thwack
• wallop
• whack
• whale
• zap

Noun (2)

• bang
• bash
• bat
• beat
• belt
• biff
• blow
• bop
• buffet
• bust
• chop
• clap
• clip
• clout
• crack
• cuff
• dab
• douse [British]
• fillip
• hack
• haymaker
• hit
• hook
• knock
• larrup [dialect]
• lash
• lick
• pelt
• pick
• plump
• poke
• pound
• punch
• rap
• slam
• slap
• slug
• smack
• smash
• sock
• spank
• stinger
• stripe
• stroke
• swat
• swipe
• switch
• thud
• thump
• thwack
• wallop
• welt
• whack
• wham
• whop
• whap

Examples of box in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

But when Jenny gives him a box for safekeeping, Reyes discovers a mysterious Scarab inside. —Rudie Obias, Variety, 26 Sep. 2023

The used espresso grounds, known as a puck, are then tapped out into a knock box for easy disposal—made even easier with the model from Saint Anthony Industries, according to Kim. —Juliet Izon, wsj.com, 26 Sep. 2023

The set packs into a cardboard box with a plastic handle. —Maya Polton, Parents, 26 Sep. 2023

And while Swift sharing a box with Kelce’s mom may have broken the internet, the All-Pro tight end’s pregame fit got its share of clicks, too. —Tori Latham, Robb Report, 25 Sep. 2023

At one point, Witold bequeaths Beatriz a collection of poems in a box labelled with her name and the phone number of Sala Mompou. —Jennifer Wilson, The New Yorker, 25 Sep. 2023

At his booth, Gilday sold a stormtrooper action figure — still in its box — for around $10. —Jonah Valdez, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2023

Also this week, Kraft hopped on the recall train for 83,000 boxes of its cheese Singles due to a potential choking hazard. —Li Goldstein, Bon Appétit, 22 Sep. 2023

The question box includes a space for your name, but this is optional. —Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 15 Sep. 2023

Verb

Young Chinese take a stand against pressures of modern life — by lying down Over at the Pacific Department Store shopping mall, shoppers flooded in on its last day of operation, jostling with salespeople boxing up inventory. —Meaghan Tobin, Washington Post, 24 Sep. 2023

The professional fights Manuel has fought thus far have come in no small measure due to the support of Golden Boy Promotions, a match-making company founded by boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya that is one of the biggest in the sport. —Ben Wyatt, Rolling Stone, 23 Sep. 2023

The officers used their cruisers to box Pinto’s car in, and Yakey and Officer Bret Simas got out to pull Pinto out of his car. —Amanda Milkovits, BostonGlobe.com, 16 Sep. 2023

Sort canned and boxed food donations, repack and label bulk food items in family-sized portions and sort produce. —oregonlive, 24 Aug. 2023

Free classes offered at boxing gym LVLZ Boxing will hold a grand opening from noon to 4 p.m. Aug. 13 at the gym, 1342C E. Mission Road. —Linda McIntosh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Aug. 2023

Her trainer takes a different approach to achieve them, boxing for upper body strength, air-suspending crunches, and squats with an elastic band. —Dominique Fluker, Essence, 8 Sep. 2023

Bananas headed to Europe are boxed at plantations, loaded into trucks that take them to massive warehouses in and around Guayaquil and transferred to maritime containers driven to an area port. —Regina Garcia Cano, Chicago Tribune, 5 Sep. 2023

Clean Cult Clean Cult is working towards boxing out plastic with refillable cleaning products. —Christina Montoya Fiedler, Woman's Day, 17 Aug. 2023

See More

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

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

Noun (2)

Middle English

Noun (3)

Middle English, from Old English, from Latin buxus, from Greek pyxos

Verb (3)

probably from Spanish bojar to circumnavigate, from Catalan vogir to turn, from Latin volvere to roll — more at voluble

First Known Use

Noun (1)

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

Verb (1)

1545, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb (3)

1713, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing box

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

See More

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

See More

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

Noun

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

Noun

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

Noun

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