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eavestrough
DCHP-2 (Oct 2016)
Spelling variants:eaves-trough, eaves trough;
n. — usually in the plural, Housing
a trough running along the edge of a roof that collects and drains rain water.
Type: 1. Origin — Eavestrough is virtually unknown outside Canada, and it is 25 times more common in Canadian English than in American English (see Chart 1). The citations in OED-3 (s.v. "eaves" (C1.a)) are all North American, although it is not labelled as such. Boberg (2010: 176) finds that eavestrough is most frequently used in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Ontario; our internet data confirm his findings (see Chart 2). Gutter is the preferred variant on the coasts (BC and Newfoundland) and in Anglophone Quebec. According to DARE (s.v. "eaves trough"), AmE usage of eavestrough appears chiefly in the dialects of the northern and north midland US, and less often in the west. The earliest US citation is from the 1851 novel Moby Dick by Hermann Melville, see OED-3, s.v. "eaves (C1, Compounds, "eaves-trough").
An older form is eavestroughing, used a as noun, which is quite rare today (but see the 1906 and 1937 quotations).
See also COD-2, s.v. "eavestrough", which is marked "N. Amer. (esp. Cdn)".
An older form is eavestroughing, used a as noun, which is quite rare today (but see the 1906 and 1937 quotations).
See also COD-2, s.v. "eavestrough", which is marked "N. Amer. (esp. Cdn)".
This is a nominal compound of eaves 'the part of the roof that stands out beyond the walls' and trough 'container of liquids'. In oral usage, a metonymical change (a part is taken for the whole) occurs occasionally when eavestrough is shortened to eaves.
Quotations
1863
If the walls of a house adjoining a street in a city were erected in so insecure a manner as to be liable to fall upon persons passing by, or if the eaves-trough or water conductor were so arranged as to throw a stream from a roof onto a sidewalk, there being in either case no structure erected within or above the travelled way, it would not constitute a defect in that way.
1872
A chap who rooms up above the eaves-trough impertinently remarks that although naturalists make no mention of India-rubber birds, he has seen doves that were gutter-perchers.
1896
As this was undesireable, and because lumber could not be purchased to make a floor or a roof, and therefore we could not have eavestroughs outside, the next best thing was to have an eavestrough inside.
1906
John Wallace-Tinsmith. 65 King St. Phone 25.
Cornice, Roofing, Skylights, Eavestroughing, Metal Ceilings.
1943
Ald. Black objected to a clause fobidding householders to allow eavestroughs to become packed with leaves and stagnant water, on the grounds it couldn't be enforced.
1967
Enameltone aluminum windows, combination doors and patio doorframes, eavestroughs, exterior lighting and mailbox.
1969
The main theme, though, will be what the provincial and municipal governments should do to create an atmosphere of confidence in which people will want to fix that sagging eavestrough or leaning chimney.
1978
That instinct is to foul every eavestrough, dive-bomb every unsuspecting skull and turn every clean wash on an outdoor clothesline into an avian latrine.
1987
There is a hole in our galvanized eavestrough that is dripping on our porch, directly in front of the entrance door.
1998
Read said people are turning to alternatives like smaller homes, condominiums and even luxury apartments. He pointed to the success of the new, upscale Buckingham Place apartment complex in Riverview as an example.
"There are nice units there that would be very appealing to people who no longer want to mow lawns or do eave troughs," said Read.
2001
Clearly, the snow boot, the boot built for warmth, the boot designed to keep your toes from chipping off like icicles on an eavestrough, is an item of apparel worn only by geeks and knobs and losers.
2014
You want to ensure eavestroughs are ready for the rainy season. As soon as the snow melts, get up there and clean, says Carew. You may want to do it again at the end of summer or early fall before the freeze. Extra weight from frozen debris or water in the gutter track can damage the eavestrough.
References
- Boberg (2010)
- COD-2
- OED-3 • "eaves"
- DARE
Images
Image 1: An eavestrough. Source: Wikimedia Commons. Photo: M. Gstohl
Chart 1: Internet Domain Search, 21 Sep. 2012
