Both Uses
breech
in
A Tale of Two Cities
(Auto-generated)
- The wine-shop was a corner shop, better than most others in its appearance and degree, and the master of the wine-shop had stood outside it, in a yellow waistcoat and green breeches, looking on at the struggle for the lost wine.†
Chpt 1.5breeches = pants
- Then only was he permitted to be seen, spectacularly poring over large books, and casting his breeches and gaiters into the general weight of the establishment.†
Chpt 2.1 *
Definitions:
-
(1)
(breech) rear
Most commonly used today in the phrase breech birth in reference to a baby who comes out of the birth canal butt-first rather than head-first.More-archaic senses seen in classic literature include:- breechcloth -- a form of loincloth consisting in a strip of material passed between the thighs and held up in front and behind by a belt or string
- breeches -- pants
- a cannon's breech -- the rear of a gun
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(2)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) More rarely,
breech can refer to the lower part of a pulley block.