place-brick
Definition
Noun: - A partially fired brick: "place-brick" refers to a brick that has been dried but not fully fired in the kiln, typically due to being positioned near the kiln's opening where cooler air or drafts prevent proper heat exposure.
Usage Examples
- (A brick that remains unfired due to draft exposure.)
- (A brick that is underfired because of its placement in the kiln.)
Advanced Usage
- "to be a place-brick": to be incomplete or unfinished due to unfavorable conditions.
- His education was a place-brick, interrupted by the war and never resumed. (Figurative use: something left incomplete because of external factors.)
Variants and Related Words
- Place-bricking (n): the process of bricks becoming underfired due to kiln placement.
- The place-bricking of the outer rows is a common problem in wood-fired kilns. (The phenomenon of bricks being underfired.)
Synonyms
- Underfired brick: a brick that has not been heated enough to achieve full hardness.
- Green brick: an unfired or partially fired brick (though "green brick" usually refers to unfired clay before it enters the kiln).
Related Idioms
- Place-brick in the wall: an element that is weaker or less reliable than others.
- That old support beam is the place-brick in the wall; it might give way under pressure. (A metaphorical weak point.)