penalty box

[pen-l-tee boks]

noun

1. Ice Hockey.,  an enclosed space adjacent to the rink for penalized players, the penalty timekeeper, the game timekeeper, and the official scorer.

   Prior to 1963, there was only one penalty box in each of the six NHL arenas.

2. a temporary punishment: When we send our son to the penalty box, he knows to go straight to his room.

   I can’t go because I’ve been sent to the penalty box for missing another curfew.

   When we send our son to the penalty box, he knows to go straight to his room.

3. a chastisement or humiliation.

   If you dare voice an opposing opinion at these meetings, you end up in the penalty box.

penalty box

noun

1. soccer another name for penalty area

2. ice hockey a bench for players serving time penalties

Word History and Origins

Origin of penalty box¹

First recorded in 1910–15

Example Sentences

Like last season, Rangers found it difficult to break down a team domestically who sat back to defend their penalty box at Ibrox - and Thompson gave credit to Pressley.

From BBC

And he got involved in deeper positions too, to the right side of the penalty box, which is a place he was not seen as often in that game at Stamford Bridge.

From BBC

It was Palace's first shot and first touch inside the penalty box, but with such economy and ruthlessness came the decisive moment.

From BBC

But maybe we're looking too closely at 'love trains' and marking systems in a messy penalty box.

From BBC

In the City Section Open Division boys’ rivalry game between El Camino Real and Birmingham, the Patriots’ goalkeeper, Armando Cervantes, tackled El Camino Real’s Christopher Montenegro in the penalty box to prevent a goal.

From Los Angeles Times