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 in

We were boxed in and couldn't get out of our parking space.

—sometimes used figuratively

I feel boxed in by all these rules.

Examples of box in in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Often, one of the pair is more offensive or box-to-box in their profile, with the other being more of a traditional, defensive-minded midfielder whose strengths are to break up opposition attacks. —Mark Carey, New York Times, 23 Oct. 2025

In response, two other law enforcement vehicles went to block Parias’ vehicle, leaving him boxed in, according to prosecutors. —Julia Marnin, Sacbee.com, 22 Oct. 2025

Federal agents surrounded and boxed in someone in a vehicle. —Louis Casiano, FOXNews.com, 21 Oct. 2025

He had been assigned the last car in a row of six, each manned by a colored youth standing inside his metal box in a red uniform, operating the lever that sent the car up from the basement grill to the roof-garden restaurant on the fifteenth floor and then back down again all day. —Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2025

Rhymes for box in

• coxon
• oxen
• tocsin
• toxin
• aflatoxin
• antitoxin
• digitoxin
• endotoxin
• exotoxin
• ferredoxin
• mycotoxin
• neurotoxin