book matches
- noun
- US
:
fósforos de libro
- Many restaurants used to give away free book matches with their logo printed on the cover.
Examples
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I bought a pack of book matches for the camping trip.
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The old desk drawer was filled with several forgotten book matches from hotels and bars.
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He took a book matches from the counter to light his cigarette.
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Can you pass me the book matches?
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He took a book matches from the counter to light his cigarette.
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Many restaurants used to give away free book matches with their logo printed on the cover.
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The old desk drawer was filled with several forgotten book matches from hotels and bars.
Synonyms
19
4.1
A small paper folder holding a row of matches to light things
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derivable from combining 'book' (a small booklet) with 'matches' (striking sticks): it refers to matches presented in a booklet/pack. This is a straightforward noun–noun compounding pattern found cross-linguistically (e.g. 'matchbook') and a B1 learner who knows both words would readily infer the intended object.
Etymology
The noun book matches comes from their look: thin matches attached inside a folding paper cover that looks like a little book. Shops often printed a name or picture on the cover and gave them away, and the rough strip on the cover lets you strike a match to make a flame, so 'book matches' means 'small, flat paper matches in a folding cover'.