A container approved by the Ministry of the Environment for the safe disposal of sharps.

Made of a variety of products from cardboard to plastic. Each sharps container must be either labeled with the universal biohazard symbol and the word "biohazard" or be color-coded red. Sharps containers must be rigid, break-resistant, closable, puncture resistant, and leakproof on sides and bottom.  Sharps containers must be able to be closed in such a manner as to be completely sealed.

A receptacle that in addition to meeting the conditions of a reusable container, is also puncture resistant.

A container for disposal of used needles and syringes or other sharp objects; often made of hard plastic so that needles cannot poke through.

A sharps container is a single use container that is filled with used medical needles (and other sharp medical instruments, such as an IV catheter), then disposed of. It is standard practice in developed countries for used needles to be placed immediately into a sharps container after a single use. Re-using needles is generally not done in developed countries, as a single use starts to dull them and renders them unsterile.