Safebox

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A protective storage unit specifically made to keep valuable items safe from theft or damage
2. A secure container utilized for the purpose of storing important belongings and documents safely
3. A locked box designed to protect precious items or documents from unauthorized access

Etymology: "Safebox" is a plain compound: "safe," a word that originally meant unhurt or uninjured and came into English from Old French "sauf," which traces back to Latin "salvus," meaning whole or healthy, joined to "box," a container. Put together, the two parts describe exactly what the object does, a box that keeps what is inside from harm or theft. The "safe" in the compound is the adjective sense rather than the noun sense for a strongbox. The strongbox sense of "safe" developed later, so the compound has its literal meaning as a protected container. Because the two elements are both ordinary English words, the term needed no special coinage and reads transparently to any speaker.

Synonyms: safe, vault

Antonyms: open