Box

Part of speech: noun, verb

Pronunciation: /bɒks/

Definitions

1. A container with flat sides and a lid used for storing or transporting objects ; a square or rectangular space marked especially for a specific purpose ; a structure or area in sports where certain rules apply
2. A typically rectangular receptacle designed to hold items securely ; a delineated area often used in games or performances ; the designated area in arenas or theaters reserved for specific participants or spectators
3. A solid figure usually having six flat faces used for packaging or holding things ; a marked zone on a field or court defining playing boundaries or positions ; an enclosed section in a venue for officials, commentators, or VIPs

Etymology: The most striking thing about "box" is how little anyone can say for certain about where it began. Its likeliest ancestry runs through the Greek "puxis", a small container made from boxwood, and "púxos", the boxwood tree itself, but the connection is uncertain and the English word may have arrived by a different route. What is clearer is its family across northern Europe: Middle Dutch "bosse" and "busse" meant a jar or round box, Old High German "buhsa" gave German "Büchse" (a box or can), and Swedish "bössa" still means box. The tree and the container seem to have been linked from the start, since the wood was prized for making small boxes. The English word has also taken on its own playful and technical lives. The humorous plural "boxen", meaning a set of computers or a workshop of machines, is formed by adding "-en", modelled on the plural "oxen". In motor racing, "box" names the pit area because it is more distinct over the radio than "pit".

Synonyms: container, case, package, carton, crate