1.
shoe cabinet, shoe rack, shoe cupboard
A cabinet or storage area at the entrance of a home, school, or building for storing shoes when entering. Named after geta (traditional wooden sandals) but used for all footwear.
靴は下駄箱に入れてください。
Please put your shoes in the shoe cabinet.
学校の下駄箱に手紙が入っていた。
There was a letter in my shoe locker at school.
玄関に新しい下駄箱を置いた。
I put a new shoe cabinet in the entryway.
下駄箱が靴でいっぱいだ。
The shoe cabinet is full of shoes.
COMPOSITION: 下駄 (geta, traditional wooden sandals) + 箱 (box)
NAME ORIGIN: Although named after traditional geta sandals, modern 下駄箱 are used for all types of footwear including sneakers, boots, and regular shoes.
CONTEXTS:
- At home: Usually located in the 玄関 (entryway)
- At school: Students have individual shoe lockers to change from outdoor to indoor shoes
- At gyms/offices: Used to store street shoes when changing to indoor footwear
ALTERNATIVE NAMES:
- 靴箱 - shoe box (also used)
- シューズボックス - shoes box (loanword)
- シューズロッカー - shoe locker (in schools)
CULTURAL NOTE: In Japanese schools, students often leave personal notes, love letters, or chocolates (on Valentine's Day) in classmates' shoe lockers.