A matchbox is a small cardboard or wooden box that holds matches. The box is designed with a rough striking surface on one side where you drag the match head to create a spark and light it. Matchboxes are usually small enough to fit in your pocket, often about the size of two fingers held together.

Before lighters became common, matchboxes were essential household items found in nearly every kitchen and kept by every fireplace. People used them to light stoves, candles, lanterns, and campfires. Today, you still find matchboxes in many homes, especially for lighting birthday candles, fireplaces, or camp stoves.

The word “matchbox” also describes anything extremely small. When someone says an apartment is the size of a matchbox, they mean it's tiny and cramped. Toy collectors know Matchbox cars as miniature die-cast vehicles originally made in England in the 1950s, named because they came in boxes similar to matchboxes. These tiny toy cars became enormously popular and are still collected today, with some vintage models worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars to collectors.