cable box

American  

noun

1. an electronic device that allows cable television channels to be viewed by a subscriber.

2. an electronic device that converts a digital television signal to analog or unscrambles a television signal.

---

Example Sentences

Then a receiver at someone’s home, like an antenna, would pick up that signal and a cable box would decode it: a method known as multicast.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 13, 2026

But restoring it was a recognition of an undeniable fact: the future belongs to streaming, so why relegate a familiar and respected brand name to the waning cable box?

From Los Angeles Times • May 16, 2025

“There’s no contract, no cable box, and no wait time to subscribe,” Disney said in the blog post.

From Reuters • Sep. 5, 2023

All your “campaign reboots” — the equivalent of unplugging the cable box for 15 seconds before plugging it back in — have not worked.

From Washington Times • Aug. 7, 2023

The experience of TV, meanwhile, has become less tied to the cable box and the network schedule.

From New York Times • Jan. 6, 2023