boxlike
Meaning
Having the shape or appearance of a box; resembling a box.
Structure
Usage
The building had a stark, boxlike silhouette against the sky.
She preferred the older, curved designs to the new, boxlike models of the car.
The device was housed in a simple, boxlike case of grey metal.
Etymology
The word "boxlike" is a transparent modern English compound formed by combining the noun "box" with the adjectival suffix "-like." The term "box" itself has a long history, tracing back to the Greek pyxis, referring to a small container made from boxwood. The suffix "-like," originating from the Old English word for "body" or "form," evolved to denote resemblance. Therefore, "boxlike" logically and directly describes an object whose form mimics the characteristic rectangular, often cuboid, shape of a typical box.
Analysis
- box: From Old English box (a container, originally made of boxwood), from Late Latin buxis, from Greek pyxis (boxwood box). Functions as the core noun root. - like: From Old English līc (body, form; similar), from Proto-Germanic līkō. Functions as an adjective-forming suffix meaning "having the form or characteristics of".