noun

cupboard

A cabinet with shelves for storing things.

We keep our plates and bowls in the kitchen cupboard.

Etymology

The compound originally names a board on which cups or other vessels were displayed. It broadened to the enclosed, shelved storage furniture now called a cupboard.

More examples

  • She opens the cupboard to get a clean towel.
  • The spare batteries are on the cupboard's top shelf.
  • These cupboards provide extra storage above the counter.

Forms

cupboard · cupboards

Similar words

cabinet
A broader term for storage furniture, sometimes fitted with drawers.
locker
Usually a narrow, lockable cabinet for one person's belongings.