Pigeonholed

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Placed in a particular category or compartment ; unfairly disregarded or treated as unimportant
2. Classified under a narrow label or group ; neglected by being dismissed without proper consideration
3. Assigned to a fixed position or stereotype ; overlooked or rejected without serious attention

Etymology: Pigeonholed is the past tense of "pigeonhole," and the verb is simply derived from the noun, which joins "pigeon" and "hole." The noun began literally: a pigeonhole was a small compartment, the kind found in a dovecote where birds roosted, and the same idea was later applied to the open cubbyholes of a writing desk, where papers were sorted and stored. Sorting papers into separate compartments is the root of the figurative sense. That is how the verb came to mean placing someone or something into a fixed category. To pigeonhole a person is to file them away under one label, as if they fit a single slot, and the image is of an object dropped into the compartment assigned to it and left there. The sense is a metaphor drawn from office furniture rather than from the birds themselves.

Synonyms: categorized, classified, labelled

Antonyms: unclassified, uncategorized