salt-box

or salt·box

[ sawlt-boks ]

noun

1. a box in which salt is kept.
2. a type of house found especially in New England, generally two full stories high in front and one story high in back, the roof having about the same pitch in both directions so that the ridge is well toward the front of the house.

Word History and Origins

Origin of salt-box¹

First recorded in 1605–15

Example Sentences

“You’ve hit it, sir! Plenty of subjects going about, for them that know how to put salt upon their tails. That’s what’s wanted. A man needn’t go far to find a subject, if he’s ready with his salt-box.”

From Literature

Whether you are looking to buy a two-bedroom, salt-box house or a 6,000-square-foot, five-bedroom home, one key question you should be considering is whether the house is too big for your current and future needs.

From Washington Post

In the past few decades, McMansions have replaced salt-box homes that could have been easily picked up and moved away from the water, Jennings noted.

From Slate

It may be left accessible to them in the salt-box, as in summer; or an occasional feed of grined hay or straw may be given them in warm, thawing weather, when their appetite is poor.

From Project Gutenberg

And so I saw her with the salt-box, savouring his stirabout so that it should be seasoned to his liking, and, with the cone of sugar, chip such morsels with her knife as he might mumble when he chose.

From Project Gutenberg