squirrel guard
n.— «Spidery-looking bits of metal and inexpensive pieces of plastic are at the heart of one of the most important strategies Entergy Texas has to prevent power outages. Commonly called squirrel guards, more than 100,000 of them are perched atop poles throughout Southeast Texas, effectively preventing the furry critters from coming into contact with equipment that has the potential to kill the animals while also causing a fault that would turn the lights off for Entergy customers.» —“‘Squirrely’ power outages pack unpopular punch” Hardin County News (Lumberton, Texas) Jan. 17, 2007. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
The words tough, through, and dough all end in O-U-G-H. So why don’t they rhyme? A lively new book addresses the many quirks of English by explaining the history of words and phrases. And: have you ever been in a situation where a group makes...
When there’s no evening meal planned at home, what do you call that scramble to cobble together your own dinner? Some people apply acronyms like YOYO — “you’re on your own” — or CORN, for “Clean Out your Refrigerator...