whale eye n.— «When a dog turns his head away from you but his eyes are turned as far to the side as possible in your direction, the whites of his eyes take on that crescent shape. When a dog’s eyes take on this appearance, professionals...
A Wisconsin man wonders about the use of the term big box store to denote the stores of big retail chains like Wal-Mart. Is big box a reference to the size and shape of the stores, or the fact that they sell huge appliances that come in, well, big...
sixth toe n.— «Like many people in ski towns across the country, alpine ski boots have altered the shape of my feet. Bone spurs and bunionettes (affectionately called the “sixth toe”) plague many a skier.» —“On the Hill: Agony of da...
fastback van n.— «“What is it?” asked a judge for the Eyes on Design Awards as he contemplated the Chrysler ecoVoyager, a long blue capsule with a stubby front end grafted onto a minivan body. He and his fellow judges…stared and...
omega block n.— «Northern California has been sitting under what meteorologists commonly refer to as an “omega” block—so named because of its distinctive shape—which features troughs of low pressure both to the west and east of a large...
pigtail n.— «Recoil Hose: The recoil hose (often called “pig tails” because of their distinctive shape) is a tight coil of plastic hose that can be extended to make connections with rack manifolds. When disconnected, the coil shape serves...