Boxing Day en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /ˈbɑːksɪŋ deɪ/ (General-American)
- (Southern-England) audio
- (Australia) audio
- /ˈbɒksɪŋ deɪ/ (Received-Pronunciation)
Etymology
Perhaps because of boxes that were placed outside churches to collect special offerings tied to St. Stephen's Day; or because of the old British custom of tradesmen collecting “Christmas boxes” of money or presents on the first weekday after Christmas as thanks for good service, mentioned by the English diarist Samuel Pepys (1633–1703).
Meanings
-
The day after Christmas; the 26th of December.
Boxing Day is celebrated on December 26 each year and is a national holiday in the UK. […] Boxing Day is a time to spend with family or friends, particularly those not seen on Christmas Day itself. It is also a day to eat left over turkey. […] Boxing Day is also a time when the Brits show their eccentricity by taking part in all kinds of bizarre traditions including swimming the icy cold English Channel, or running into the sea, fun runs and charity events. December 26 is a big day for sales too. Dramatic price reductions lure out millions of shoppers who even queue for hours before the shops open.
2016 December 22, Chloe Kerr, “More turkey! Where does Boxing Day get its name, what are its origins and how is it celebrated?”, in The Sun, London:On Boxing day, December 26th, 1902, the sixth grand annual pantomime, "Jack & the beanstalk"
[1902], On Boxing Day, December 26th, 1902, the Sixth Grand Annual Pantomime, “Jack & the Beanstalk”: With which is Incorporated the Patriotic Legend, “St. George and the Dragon.” (pantomime programme), Kingston upon Thames, London: [Royal County Theatre], →OCLC, title page:Boxing-day in the London streets, and especially a wet Boxing-day, can scarcely fail to afford us some tableaux vivants illustrative of English metropolitan life. […] Christmas-eve of the year about which I write was bright and springlike; Christmas-day dismal, dark, and un-Christmas-like; but Boxing-day that year was essentially muggy, sloppy, drizzly, and nasty.
1875, Charles Maurice Davies, “Boxing-day on the Streets”, in Mystic London, or, Phases of Occult Life in the Metropolis, London: Tinsley, →OCLC:There are plenty of discounted Christmas items in the Boxing Day sale.
Think about all those Boxing Day sales, then sit back and relish in the fact that you have enough and that you don't give a shit.
2015 January 5, Steven J. Bennett, “Rule #12: Boxing Day”, in 365 Rules of the New World: If We Had a Chance to Do It All Over Again, Would We Do It Right?, Bloomington, Ind.: Balboa Press, Hay House, →ISBN, page 483:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boxing Days | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
Relateds
Proclamation Day · St. Stephen’s Day · Christmas Day · Christmas Eve
Translations (30)
da anden juledag (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · fi tapani (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · hi बॉक्सिंग डे (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · cy Dydd San Steffan (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · it Santo Stefano (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · he יום הקופסאות (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · fr lendemain de Noël (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · hu karácsony másnapja (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · nl tweede kerstdag (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · kl juullip-aappaa (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · de Zweiter Weihnachtstag (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · ru День пода́рков (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · nb andre juledag (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · is annar í jólum (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · ko 박싱 데이 (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · fr Saint-Étienne (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · fi tapaninpäivä (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · nn andre juledag (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · ar يَوْم اَلصَّنَادِيق (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · fa روز باکسینگ (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · pl drugi dzień świąt (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · sv annandagen (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · fr Boxing Day (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · gl día de San Estevo (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · es Boxing Day (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · ar بُوكْسِينْج دَاي (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · cy Gŵyl San Steffan (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · sv annandag jul (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · cmn 節禮日 /节礼日 (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day) · ja ボクシング・デー (the day after Christmas: 26 December — see also St. Stephen's Day)