Meaning & use
box
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Meanings
nouncountable
A container with flat sides, often with a lid, used for storing or carrying things.
Grammar: Plural is boxes. Often followed by of: a box of chocolates.
Patterns
- a box of something
- in a box
She packed the dishes carefully into a cardboard box.
He kept his old letters in a wooden box under the bed.
A box of tissues sat on the table next to the sofa.
nouncountable
A small enclosed area or marked space meant for a particular purpose, such as a place on a form, a booth, or a section of seats.
Grammar: Often combined with another noun: witness box, penalty box, phone box.
Patterns
- tick the box
- the box for something
Please tick the box if you agree with the terms.
The witness stepped into the box and took the oath.
We watched the game from a private box above the field.
verbtransitive or intransitive
To fight another person in the sport of boxing, using padded gloves and following set rules.
Grammar: No object when you box for a team or in general; with an object it means to fight someone: she boxed him.
Patterns
- box someone
- box for something
He boxed for his university team for three years.
She learned to box at a local gym to stay fit.
The champion boxed his challenger over twelve rounds.
verbtransitive
To put something into a box or boxes, often to pack or store it.
Grammar: Usually takes up: box up the books. Also used as in boxed in, meaning trapped.
Patterns
- box something up
- box something in
We boxed up all the winter clothes and put them in the attic.
The shop boxes each order by hand before sending it.
A delivery van boxed me in so I could not pull out of the space.
Word forms
| plural | boxes |
|---|---|
| third person singular | boxes |
| past tense | boxed |
| past participle | boxed |
| -ing form | boxing |
Common combinations
- cardboard box
- The books arrived in a heavy cardboard box.
- tick the box
- Tick the box next to your preferred option.
- think outside the box
- The team needed to think outside the box to solve the problem.
- box office
- The film was a hit at the box office on its opening weekend.
- box something up
- I will box up these old toys and donate them.
- post office box
- Send the form to our post office box downtown.
Synonyms and how they differ
- carton
- A carton is usually a lightweight cardboard container for goods like milk or eggs, whereas a box can be made of any material.
- crate
- A crate is a strong, often wooden or plastic container for heavy or bulky items, while a box can be small and light.
- case
- A case is often built to protect a specific object, like a guitar case, while a box is a general container.
- chest
- A chest is a large, strong box, usually with a hinged lid, used for storing valuable or heavy things.
Word family
Practice
The shop was closing, so the assistants began to ___ up the unsold stock for the warehouse.
Choose one answer.
After began to, the base verb is needed: box up means to pack into boxes. Boxing, boxes and boxer do not complete this infinitive.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “box”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.