Etymograph

English

snuffbox

From snuff + box.

A compound of snuff + box

Middle Dutch snuffen ‘to snuff, sniff, snuffle’

English snuff

Late Latin buxis ‘box’

Proto-West Germanic *buhsā ‘box’

Old English box ‘box, case’

Middle English box ‘container’

English box

Today it means

noun A small box or container to hold snuff or loose tobacco.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “snuffbox”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / snuffbox