Coign

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Coign \Coign\ (koin), n.
     A var. spelling of {Coin}, {Quoin}, a corner, wedge; --
     chiefly used in the phrase coign of vantage, a position
     advantageous for action or observation.
     [Webster 1913 Suppl.]
  


           From some shielded nook or coign of vantage. --The
                                                    Century.
     [Webster 1913 Suppl.]
  
           The lithosphere would be depressed on four faces; . . .
           the four projecting coigns would stand up as
           continents.                              --Nature.
     [Webster 1913 Suppl.]
  
     2. an expandable metal or wooden wedge used by printers to
        lock up a form within a chase.
  
     Syn: quoin, coigne.
          [WordNet 1.5]
  
     3. the keystone of an arch.
  
     Syn: quoin, coigne.
          [WordNet 1.5]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  coign
       n 1: expandable metal or wooden wedge used by printers to lock up
            a form within a chase [syn: {quoin}, {coigne}]
       2: the keystone of an arch [syn: {quoin}, {coigne}]