sandbox
UK: ˈsændbɒks | US: ˈsændbɑːks
n. a shallow box or pit filled with sand for children to play in
n. (computing) a virtual environment for testing code without affecting live systems
n. (military) a container for holding sand used in extinguishing fires
The word "sandbox" is a straightforward compound of "sand" (from Old English sand, meaning granular particles of rock) and "box" (from Old English box, meaning a container). It emerged in the 19th century to describe literal sand-filled play areas for children. In the 20th century, the term was adopted metaphorically in computing to denote isolated testing environments, drawing on the idea of a contained "play space" for experimentation.
The children built castles in the sandbox at the playground.
Developers use a sandbox to test new software features safely.
The military vehicle carried a sandbox for emergency fire control.
Her laptop crashed because she disabled the sandbox protection.
The daycare center replaced the old sandbox with a larger one.