Back to all words

Box

4 stages from Greek to English.

Today it means a container with flat sides and a lid; an evergreen shrub

Where does the word "box" come from? It comes from Greek pýxos, passing through Latin and Old English before entering English (1300s).

pýxos→buxus→box→box

Greek · ancient

the box tree; its hard wood gave the pyxis, a lidded Greek container often painted with scenes

Latin · classical

"box tree, boxwood"

boxwood, valued for its fine hard grain and clipped into topiary in Roman gardens, as Pliny the Younger describes at his villa

Old English · medieval

"box tree; container"

meant the tree, then containers made from its wood

English · 1300s

'Boxing Day', from Christmas boxes of money given to servants, is recorded from the 1830s

Drag to pan · scroll to zoom

Read the full story

Box’s story begins in Greek: pýxos meant “box tree.” The box tree; its hard wood gave the pyxis, a lidded Greek container often painted with scenes. By classical, the word had taken hold in Latin as buxus. Boxwood, valued for its fine hard grain and clipped into topiary in Roman gardens, as Pliny the Younger describes at his villa. From there it passed into Old English as box by medieval. Meant the tree, then containers made from its wood. It reached English by 1300s as box. 'Boxing Day', from Christmas boxes of money given to servants, is recorded from the 1830s. Today, box means a container with flat sides and a lid; an evergreen shrub.