A Soffit by Any Other Name
Is a soffit what I think it is?
According to Merriam-Webster, sort of maybe:
Dictionary.com says:
I really hate not knowing what to call something. Saying "those thingies made of drywall above the cabinets" is not very efficient.
According to Merriam-Webster, sort of maybe:
Main Entry: sof·fit
Pronunciation: 'sä-f&t
Function: noun
Etymology: French soffite, from Italian soffitto, from (assumed) Vulgar Latin suffictus, past participle of Latin suffigere to fasten underneath -- more at SUFFIX
: the underside of a part or member of a building (as of an overhang or staircase); especially : the intrados of an arch
Dictionary.com says:
The underside of a structural component, such as a beam, arch, staircase, or cornice.
I really hate not knowing what to call something. Saying "those thingies made of drywall above the cabinets" is not very efficient.
Labels: kitchen
3 Comments:
Soffit is a fairly new term to me for this structure. I have always connected soffit with the area under a roof overhang. I have always refered to "those thingies made of drywall above the cabinets" as bulkheads, however that yields a equally less than reasuring definition:
Main Entry: bulk·head
Pronunciation: 'b&lk-"hed, 'b&l-"ked
Function: noun
Etymology: bulk structure projecting from a building + head
1 : an upright partition separating compartments
2 : a structure or partition to resist pressure or to shut off water, fire, or gas
3 : a retaining wall along a waterfront
4 : a projecting framework with a sloping door giving access to a cellar stairway or a shaft
-Andrew in Red Lion
Well, if there isn't a satisfactory word for those drywall thingies, we should just come up with one. My sister and I made up a bunch of new slang words in high school, just to see if we could make them catch on. Hmmm, didn't work out!
Maybe they could be thingus drywallicus. No?
Last night I heard someone on the HGTV show Generation Renovation refer to those thingies-over-the-cabinets as soffits. So at least I'm not the only one.
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