greenhouse
n.— «With cars, words and metal share territory: each brand’s vocabulary of shapes is collectively known as its design language. The beltline divides the greenhouse, or glassed-in upper body, from the portion that extends down from the window sills.…The angle of the windshield is known as its rake—an extreme tilt is said to be fast—while the inward angle of the side greenhouse windows is called the tumblehome.» —“Body Language: How to Talk the Designers’ Talk” by Phil Patton New York Times Apr. 1, 2007. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
A flashlight emits a steady beam of light. So what’s the flash part of that word about? Also, if you’re a nervous Nellie, you’re skittish and indecisive—both characteristics of an American politician who earned that nickname in the...
Sigrin writes from Albany, New York, that she misheard our earlier conversation about the expression shaving yak hair meaning “performing a monotonous, tedious task.” At first she thought we said shaving gnat hair, which she figures is...