box in
phrasal verb
boxed in; boxing in; boxes in
: to surround (someone or something) and make movement difficult
The other bicyclists boxed her in and she couldn't move ahead.
—usually used as (be) boxed inWe were boxed in and couldn't get out of our parking space.
—sometimes used figurativelyI feel boxed in by all these rules.
Examples of box in in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In comedy, as in Hollywood at large, there are so many ways to be boxed in.
—
Matt Grobar, Deadline, 29 Sep. 2025
Jenkins, however, refused to be boxed in.
—John Armwood Iii, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025
The Chiefs have faced the second-most light boxes in the NFL this season — categorized as situations when six or fewer defenders are lined up in the area of the field best equipped to defend the run, rather than the pass.
—Kansas City Star, 26 Sep. 2025
Grafe, 43, sat in the jury box in an orange jail jumpsuit throughout the hours-long hearing, occasionally putting his head down and looking off in the distance as the psychologists testified before Gonzalez-Marques.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 26 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for box in
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Matt Grobar, Deadline, 29 Sep. 2025
Jenkins, however, refused to be boxed in.
—John Armwood Iii, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025
The Chiefs have faced the second-most light boxes in the NFL this season — categorized as situations when six or fewer defenders are lined up in the area of the field best equipped to defend the run, rather than the pass.
—Kansas City Star, 26 Sep. 2025
Grafe, 43, sat in the jury box in an orange jail jumpsuit throughout the hours-long hearing, occasionally putting his head down and looking off in the distance as the psychologists testified before Gonzalez-Marques.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 26 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for box in
Cite this Entry
“Box in.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/box%20in. Accessed 4 Oct. 2025.
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