cupboard

Everyday

A cupboard is a piece of furniture or a space in a wall with doors and shelves, where you keep cups, plates, food or clothes. tree →

In the lessons

maths: a place where things are stored, sometimes with shelves and things on each shelf (shelves × items each = total; what is left = total − taken); everyday life: kitchen cupboard, the food cupboard; safety: cleaning things belong in a high or locked cupboard; stories: something hiding in the cupboard

Examples

• There are 24 cups in the cupboard. tree →
• The cupboard has 4 shelves with 6 plates on each. tree →
• She took 3 cans from the cupboard. tree →
• How many jars are left in the cupboard? tree →
• Put the plates back in the cupboard. tree →
• The cereal is in the top cupboard. tree →
• Cleaning sprays are kept in a locked cupboard. tree →
• Close the cupboard door. tree →
• I have a whole cupboard-full of poetry in bottles. tree →

Note

Mostly a place; shelves × items on each give a total. Trap: none special. The p is silent: say «KUB-urd». US English often says «cabinet»; British «cupboard» can also mean a closet.