crate

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

• noun A container, such as a slatted wooden case, used for storing or shipping.
• noun A container, usually of plastic, metal, or wood, used to house or transport an animal.
• noun Slang An old rickety vehicle, especially a decrepit automobile or aircraft.
• transitive verb To pack into a container, such as a slatted wooden case.
• transitive verb To put (an animal) into a crate.

from The Century Dictionary.

• noun A kind of basket or hamper of wickerwork, used for the transportation of china, glass, crockery, and similar wares; hence, any openwork casing, as a box made of slats used for packing or transporting commodities, as peaches.
• noun The amount held by such a casing.
• noun In glass manufacturing, a lot of twelve tables or disks of crown-glass. See table, 1 .
• To put or pack in a crate for transportation: as, to crate fruit, furniture, etc.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

• noun A large basket or hamper of wickerwork, used for the transportation of china, crockery, and similar wares.
• noun A box or case whose sides are of wooden slats with interspaces, -- used especially for transporting fruit.
• transitive verb To pack in a crate or case for transportation.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

• noun A large open box or basket, used especially to transport fragile goods.
• verb To put into a crate.
• verb To keep in a crate.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• noun the quantity contained in a crate
• noun a rugged box (usually made of wood); used for shipping
• verb put into a crate; as for protection