box score

noun

: a printed score of a game (such as baseball) giving the names and positions of the players and a record of the play arranged in tabular form

broadly : total count : summary

Examples of box score in a Sentence

reading the box scores in the newspaper

Recent Examples on the Web

Growing up, Sam Klemet dreamed of being the next Ernie Harwell or George Blaha, spending hours with a tape recorder reading box scores of Detroit Tigers and Pistons games from the newspaper, adding in his personal commentary about each game. —Carol Cain, USA Today, 14 Jan. 2026

The final box score didn’t reflect the fitfulness of Wednesday’s loss — after all, Vučević finished with 20 points and 16 rebounds as the Bulls’ second-highest scorer. —Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 8 Jan. 2026

When Oden walked onto the floor for the start of the third OT, Boise State coach Leon Rice ran down the sideline, waving the real-time box score that is distributed to the teams and media during timeouts; the printout had Oden with five fouls. —Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Jan. 2026

Fernández emphasized that Wolf’s development shouldn’t be judged solely by box scores. —C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 1 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

from its arrangement in a newspaper box

First Known Use

1896, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for box score

• abhor
• abor
• adore
• afore
• ardour
• ashore
• backdoor
• before
• bookstore
• candour
• centaur
• claymore

Kids Definition

box score

noun

: a printed table giving the score of a game (as baseball), a record of how it was played, and the names and positions of the players