# cupboard

Pronunciation: US say "KUB-urd" /ˈkʌb.ɚd/; say "KUB-uhd" UK /ˈkʌb.əd/, AUS /ˈkɐb.əd/

## Noun

1. A cabinet or closet fitted with shelves for storing cookware, dishes, or food, and sometimes other household items.
   - Simple: A piece of furniture with shelves and doors, used to keep dishes, food, or other things.
   - _He reached into the cupboard for a large mixing bowl._
   - _Their narrow kitchen had cupboards stacked all the way to the ceiling._
2. A closet or recess used for hanging and storing coats and other outerwear. *(dialectal, Pennsylvania, UK, Western)*
   - Simple: A small closet for hanging coats and jackets.
   - _She left her dripping umbrella in the cupboard near the entrance._
   - _The cupboard under the stairs held coats, scarves, and a row of muddy boots._

## Verb

3. To gather things together and store them away, as if into a cabinet; to hoard.
   - Simple: To gather things together and store them away, often by hoarding.
   - _Misers cupboard their wealth and spend almost nothing._
   - _During the shortage, families cupboarded whatever food they could find._

## Noun

4. A board or table used to openly display silver plate and other valuable dishware; a sideboard or buffet. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: An open table or stand used to show off silver plates and fine dishes.
5. The dishware set out on a sideboard for display, especially valuable plate. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: The fine dishes and silver shown off on a sideboard.
6. The items kept stored inside a cupboard, particularly the household's food supplies. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: The food and other things kept inside a cupboard.

## Origin

Inherited from Middle English cuppeborde or cupbord, equivalent to cup + board. By the 16th century the original /p/ had assimilated to the modern /b/ sound, though the older etymological spelling has dominated since the 18th century.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/cupboard (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).