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money box

money box

1 2.0
A small container with a slot on top for keeping coins or paper money
  • noun
  • /ˈmʌni bɑks/
  • UK
translation icon : hucha
  • Now his money box sat beside the television set on the buffet table in our living room.

Examples

  • That night, I dropped five ten-cent coins into my secret money box.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • Every time his grandmother visited, she would fill his money box with coins.

  • How did he know about my secret money box?

    Fiction book (2001)
  • Due to his money management skills, he was put in charge of the group's money box.

    Blog text (2)
  • My money box grew heavier.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • She'd noticed that when he walked forward and put a carefully folded dollar bill in Ariendo's money box.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • Vaughn Rhomer placed a five-dollar bill in Ariendo Vincent's money box.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • One of the objects retrieved from the wreck was a waterproof money box belonging to a cloth merchant from a town in Sixmoon called Madderfields.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • Children often save their allowance in a money box to buy toys later.

  • She opened the money box to count how much she had saved for her vacation.

Synonyms

piggy bank
vsmoney box
16 1.0

A small container often shaped like a pig for children to save coins

is a neutral container for money, not limited to child use or shape
coin bank
vsmoney box
1 1.0

A small container with a slot for saving coins at home

is broader, meaning a container for storing coins or other money
coin box
vsmoney box
1 3.0

A box that holds coins collected from a machine like a slot machine

is a home container for saving money rather than a machine component
savings bank
vsmoney box
1.7

A small container with a slot for keeping coins at home

is more general, referring to any container for storing money
penny bank
vsmoney box
1.7

A small container for keeping coins, often shaped like a pig

is a wider term for money storage, not only small-change collecting

How Secure

lockbox
  • US
14 5.8
safe
20 1.0
money box
  • UK
1 2.0
piggy bank
16 1.0

Surface Forms

money box singular
money boxes plural

Morphology

money + box

The meaning 'a container used for storing coins or money' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'money' (currency) with 'box' (a container). This straightforward, compositional construction is cross-linguistically common and follows regular noun-noun compounding patterns, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily understand it.

Etymology

Money box comes from the simple image of a box for money. Imagine a small box with a slot where you drop coins 'to save' them, and because people used these boxes to keep money safe, the name now means 'a container for storing coins'.