nick-and-dent merchandise n.— «Bargain-savvy customers can expect to find in-season overstocks, discontinued items and what Thomsen refers to as “nick-and-dent” merchandise.…“Some of the things are a little bit worn, but in the average home...
finger trouble n.— «It was an assembly error in the car’s in-line six that led to a blow-up and fire as one of the conrods left the scene of the crime through the side of the engine block. Race teams put such failures down to “finger trouble,”...
rape the ear v. phr.— «A familiar sound of summer was in the air: a crisply abrasive stripping noise, the sound of husks being torn away from fat cobs of white corn. Two or three shoppers were depositing pale-green husks and shimmery strands of...
cafeteria pricing n.— «However, there is a catch: a policy Diffenderffer refers to as “cafeteria” pricing. Skybus charges $5 for each checked piece of luggage. Like Southwest, flights are open seating, but you can pay $10 for the privilege of...
hammer-in n.— «At a hammer-in held last Saturday at the home of New Bedford’s George Rebello, a couple dozen knife makers from across New England and New Jersey forged, hammered and shaped steel into handsome knives.…Rebello founded the Southern...
cross-docking n.— «Cost savings are huge in Wal-Mart’s distribution and logistic functions as it employs a method called cross-docking. Products are received on one side of the warehouse and leave out of the other side, virtually eliminating the...