'Stuffing box' definitions:

Definition of 'stuffing box'

noun

A small chamber in which packing is compressed around a reciprocating shaft or piston to form a seal [syn: stuffing box, packing box]

From: GCIDE

Stuffing \Stuff"ing\, n.
1. That which is used for filling anything; as, the stuffing of a saddle or cushion. [1913 Webster]
2. (Cookery) Any seasoning preparation used to stuff meat; especially, a composition of bread, condiments, spices, etc.; forcemeat; dressing. [1913 Webster]
3. A mixture of oil and tallow used in softening and dressing leather. [1913 Webster]
Stuffing box, a device for rendering a joint impervious where there is a hole through which a movable cylindrical body, as the paston rod of a steam engine, or the plunger of a pump, slides back and forth, or in which a shaft turns. It usually consists of a box or chamber, made by an enlargement of part of the hole, forming a space around the rod or shaft for containing packing which is compressed and made to fill the space closely by means of a sleeve, called the gland, which fits loosely around the rod, and is pressed upon the packing by bolts or other means. [1913 Webster]