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pigeonhole Definition

pigeon·hole (pij′ən hōl′)

noun

  1. a small recess or hole for pigeons to nest in, usually in a compartmented structure
  2. a small open compartment, as in a desk, for filing papers

transitive verb -·holed′, -·hol′·ing

  1. to put in the pigeonhole of a desk, etc.
  2. to put aside indefinitely, as if intending to ignore or forget; shelve
  3. to assign to a category or categories; classify

pigeonhole Synonyms

pigeonhole

n.

niche, slot, compartment; see hole 2, place 2.

pigeonhole Synonyms

pigeonhole

v.

classify, categorize, group, define; see classify.

pigeonhole Usage Examples

Object

  • people: Our society seems to want to pigeonhole people, with its progress toward a world culture.
  • band: Kai: There seems to be a real feeling to pigeonhole bands.

Converse of object

  • specify: Put the result in the pigeonhole specified by the first operand.
  • have: The head gardener also has a pigeonhole with the porters.
  • give: Take the bit of paper and put in the pigeonhole given in the next line of code.
  • avoid: Trying to avoid pigeonholes and keep up some kind of coherent flow from tune to tune.
  • contain: The Porters ' Lodge is to the right inside of the main entrance; it also contains the pigeonholes.
  • check: Bumped into flat neighbor called Margery whilst checking the post pigeonhole.

Preposition: into

category: Many found it reprehensible that people on TV should be pigeonholed into ethnic categories.

Adjective modifier

  • departmental: Information will also be passed to you during the year through your departmental pigeonholes or through your supervisor ( Modern History students only ).
  • convenient: Well, against being bundled into that convenient pigeonhole at least.
  • existing: The existing legal pigeonholes make us insensitive to the many varieties of organized crime, criminal organizations, and networks of criminal cliques.

Modifies a noun

principle: The weak pigeonhole principle is related to approximate counting whose exact complexity is unknown.

Modifying Another Word

  • easily: This film is not so easily pigeonholed, nor is its protagonist.
  • n't: The movie proves again that you ca n't pigeonhole Spielberg into one genre or even one type of movie.
  • neatly: Their diversity demonstrates that blind and partially sighted people cannot be neatly pigeonholed.
  • often: It will improve the situation whereby people's problems are often pigeonholed into one category, such as race, gender or disability.

Noun used with modifier

staff: Staff pigeonholes ( in the form of white lockers ) are located on the second floor almost opposite room 222.

Preposition: in

mailroom: The pigeonholes in the mailroom are under the surveillance of the Porters.

Preposition: for

mail: Pigeonholes for postgraduate mail are situated in the Departmental Office.