I. box 1 S1 W1 /bɒks $ bɑːks/ BrE AmE noun
[ Date: 900-1000 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: buxus , from Greek pyxis , from pyxos type of tree, whose wood was used for making boxes ]
1 . CONTAINER [countable] a container for putting things in, especially one with four stiff straight sides
cardboard/wooden/plastic etc box
a strong cardboard box
toolbox/shoebox/matchbox etc (=a box used for keeping tools etc in)
2 . AMOUNT ( also boxful ) [countable] the amount of something contained in a box
box of
a box of chocolates
3 . SHAPE [countable]
a) a small square on a page for people to write information in:
Put an ‘X’ in the box if you would like to join our mailing list.
b) a ↑ square or ↑ rectangle on a page where information is given or where an answer can be written:
The box on the left gives a short history of the battle.
4 . IN A COURT/THEATRE ETC [countable] a small area of a theatre or court that is separate from where other people are sitting:
the jury box
5 . SMALL BUILDING [countable] a small building or structure used for a particular purpose SYN booth :
a sentry box
telephone box British English
6 . AT A POST OFFICE box 25/450 etc a box with a number in a ↑ post office , where you can have letters etc sent instead of to your own address SYN PO Box
7 . SPORTS FIELD [countable usually singular] a special area of a sports field that is marked by lines and used for a particular purpose:
the penalty box
8 . PROTECTION [countable] British English a piece of plastic that a man wears over his sex organs to protect them when he is playing a sport, especially ↑ cricket
9 . TREE [uncountable and countable] a small tree that keeps its leaves in winter and is often planted around the edge of a garden or field:
a box hedge
10 . TELEVISION the box informal the television:
What’s on the box tonight?
11 . be out of your box British English informal to be very drunk or have taken an illegal drug
⇨ ↑ black box
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ types of box
▪ a cardboard/wooden/plastic box
We packed all our things into big cardboard boxes.
▪ a storage box (=for storing things in)
Plastic storage boxes are useful for putting things in the attic.
▪ a toolbox
The hammer’s in the tool box.
▪ a shoebox (=that you buy shoes in)
She used to keep photographs in old shoe boxes.
▪ a sandwich/lunch box
Most of the kids bring lunch boxes to school.
▪ a jewellery box British English , a jewelry box American English
A jewellery box had gone missing.
▪ a money box (=that children save money in)
How much have you got in your money box?
▪ a cash box (=for keeping a supply of money in, for example in a shop)
Thieves stole £100 from a cash box at the school.
■ phrases
▪ a pile/stack of boxes
There was a pile of boxes in the street outside the house.
II. box 2 BrE AmE verb
[ Sense 1,4: Date: 1300-1400 ; Origin: Origin unknown. ]
[ Sense 2-3: Date: 1400-1500 ; Origin: ⇨ ↑ box 1 ]
1 . [intransitive and transitive] to fight someone as a sport by hitting them with your closed hands inside big leather ↑ glove s
2 . ( also box up ) [transitive] to put things in boxes:
Help me box up the Christmas tree lights.
⇨ ↑ boxed
3 . [transitive] to draw a box around something on a page
4 . box sb’s ears old-fashioned to hit someone on the side of their head
box somebody/something ↔ in phrasal verb
1 . to surround someone or something so that they are unable to move freely:
Someone had parked right behind them, boxing them in.
2 . feel boxed in
a) to feel that you cannot do what you want to do because a person or situation is limiting you:
Married for only a year, Connie already felt boxed in.
b) to feel that you cannot move freely, because you are in a small space
box something ↔ off phrasal verb
to separate a particular area from a larger one by putting walls around it:
We’re going to box off that corner to get extra storage space.