Chinese boxes

noun

A set of boxes, of different sizes, each fitting inside the next larger one.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nounChinese boxes pl (plural only)
  1. pluralplural onlyA set of boxes, of different sizes, each fitting inside the next larger one.

    'Continue, my dear friend. It is interesting for me to see this new Bond. Englishmen are so odd. They are like a nest of Chinese boxes. It takes a very long time to get to the centre of them.'

    1953, Ian Fleming, “The Nature of Evil”, in Casino Royale, London: Pan Books, published 1955, page 144
  2. pluralplural onlySomething that resembles a set of Chinese boxes, especially in complexity.
  3. pluralplural onlyplural of Chinese box
Cite this entry
APA

Chinese boxes. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Chinese%20boxes

MLA

“Chinese boxes.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Chinese%20boxes. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Chinese boxes,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Chinese%20boxes.

Source: Chinese boxes on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.