packaging

noun

1

: an act or instance of packaging something or someone: such as

a

: the enclosing of something in a container or covering

… damage caused by static charge during packaging, storing, and shipping.

—Chemical & Engineering News

b

: the presentation of something or someone to the public in a way that is designed to be attractive or appealing

This is public relations: the packaging of ideas, the execution of them, and the media coverage surrounding them.

—Robert Z. Chew

2

: material used to enclose or contain something

… the flashy packaging popularized by mass merchants.

—Jan Stafford

also : a covering wrapper or container : package entry 1 sense 3

the manufacture of food packagings

Examples of packaging in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Such medicines are more complicated than pills and capsules picked up at the corner drugstore and often require specialized administration, refrigeration, packaging and patient instructions. —Bruce Japsen, Forbes, 3 Mar. 2025

In December, the company announced a drastic reduction of its packaging sustainability goals. —Maria Sole Campinoti, CNN, 2 Mar. 2025

Is its packaging consciously designed or needlessly wasteful? —Christa Joanna Lee, Allure, 2 Mar. 2025

Amazon would likely use plastic packaging for Haul shipments, which would conflict with its sustainability goals in the region, according to one of the sources. —Annie Palmer, CNBC, 28 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

from gerund of package entry 2

First Known Use

circa 1875, in the meaning defined at sense 1