egg-and-tongue

9.8

A decorative border with egg-shaped figures alternating with small pointed shapes

noun

Specialized

: huevo y lengua

The ceiling was bordered by a beautiful egg-and-tongue molding that added a touch of elegance to the room.

Examples

Many classical buildings feature egg-and-tongue motifs on cornices and columns.
Restorers carefully replicated the original egg-and-tongue design to maintain historical accuracy.
The egg-and-tongue design is beautiful.
Look at that egg-and-tongue molding!
Many classical buildings feature egg-and-tongue motifs on cornices and columns.
Restorers carefully replicated the original egg-and-tongue design to maintain historical accuracy.
The ceiling was bordered by a beautiful egg-and-tongue molding that added a touch of elegance to the room.

Synonyms

egg-and-dart

vsegg-and-tongue

Specialized

9.6

A decorative border with egg-shaped parts next to pointed shapes used on classical buildings

allows either a pointed element or a flat projecting ornament

How Decorative

egg-and-tongue

Specialized

9.8

Easter egg

20 1.0

ornamental

1 4.8

Surface Forms

egg-and-tongue singular

egg-and-tongues plural

Morphology

egg-and-tongue = egg + tongue (transparent) = egg + and + tongue

The term names a molding pattern composed of egg-shaped and tongue-shaped motifs, so its meaning is directly descriptive from the component words.

Etymology

Egg-and-tongue comes from exactly what it looks like: a repeating decorative border made of small egg shapes next to pointed tongue shapes. So the name tells you what it means — a row of 'eggs' and 'tongues' used as a decorative border.