box office

noun

1

a

: an office (as in a theater) where tickets of admission are sold

b

: income from ticket sales (as for a film)

2

: the ability (as of a show) to attract ticket buyers

also : something that enhances that ability

any publicity is good box office

Examples of box office in a Sentence

The box office will open at 10:00 a.m.

Recent Examples on the Web

The busy box office is a good sign for theaters, which are coming off alackluster end to the summer season. —Auzinea Bacon, CNN Money, 14 Sep. 2025

Tyriq Withers and Marlon Wayans unite for the sports horror Him, Cillian Murphy stars in Netflix's collegiate comedy drama Steve, and Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell take viewers on A Big Bold Beautiful Journey in a bid for box office glory. —Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Sep. 2025

Hopefully with a billion dollar box office haul between them, Ufotable imagines. —Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 14 Sep. 2025

Though it was met with mixed reviews from critics, Friday the 13th was a box office success at the time of its release and is name-dropped in the first Scream when Ghostface quizzes Drew Barrymore’s character on who the killer in the film is. —Yasmeen Hamadeh, PEOPLE, 13 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1741, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for box office

• interoffice

Kids Definition

box office

noun

: an office in a public place (as a theater or stadium) where admission tickets are sold