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The American
HeritageŽ Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. defines: -Church key- SYLLABICATION: church key NOUN : A can or bottle opener having a usually triangular head. |
CHURCH KEYS |
"The tool that punches a
triangular hole in a beer can is called a church key." |
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I have been told that the
expression church key is much older than the device that leaves a triangular hole in beer cans. Indeed, it goes back to early days of the brewing business, when beer was first dispensed in bottles. 'The expression church key is old in the brewing business,' Everybody carried a bottle opener or church key, perhaps so called because it looked like the top end of the kind of heavy ornate key used to unlock church doors. |
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The 1st one
is a milk opener. The 2nd opener is a cork screw. It has a ring to hold on to to pull the screw out of a round case. The 3rd and 4th are bottle openers. The last two are beer bottle/can openers. |
