inbox

noun

in·​box ˈin-ˌbäks 

variants or in-box

plural inboxes or in-boxes

1

: a box or tray (as on a desk) for holding incoming interoffice mail

2

: a computer folder devoted to incoming email

One of my favorite rituals soon became scanning our email inbox, looking for your photographs … and reading the letters you sent …

—Amy Virshup

Examples of inbox in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Have the latest Reality Checks delivered to your inbox with our free newsletter. —Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 1 Apr. 2026

Click here to get Hamilton County news sent straight to your inbox and subscribe to the IndyStar North newsletter. —Jake Allen, IndyStar, 1 Apr. 2026

Subscribe to have the Off Hours newsletter delivered to your inbox each Thursday morning for free. —Cooper Worth, Des Moines Register, 1 Apr. 2026

Click here to have breaking news alerts sent directly to your inbox. —Angie Dimichele, Sun Sentinel, 1 Apr. 2026

Sign up to get our biotech newsletter in your inbox. —Elaine Chen, STAT, 1 Apr. 2026

Subscribe here to receive future editions in your inbox. —Alex Harring, CNBC, 1 Apr. 2026

Sign up here to get it in your inbox. —Josh Feldman, NBC news, 1 Apr. 2026

Sign up for the Goings On newsletter to receive their selections, and other cultural recommendations, in your inbox. —The New Yorker, New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1958, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

in-box

noun

ˈin-ˌbäks 

: a receptacle for incoming letters between offices in an organization

also : a computer folder for incoming email