| Colorful English! |
| Word
or Phrase: | Part of
Speech: | Idiom or General?: |
Usage? | Restricted? |
| black lung | noun | general | fairly
common in some areas,
medical | No |
| Meaning: |
| a
miner's lung disease, pneumoconiosis, caused by consistent inhalation of
coal dust |
| Example(s): |
| The number of
people dying from black lung has decreased
thanks to better safety in mines. |
Note: I often tease my smoking friends about the evils
and dangers of their tobacco habit. Your lungs are also blackened, and your
chances of dying are much greater. But, this term is not used to relate to
the diseases caused by tobacco, just coal and similar mine dusts. Still, I
hope you all give up smoking as soon as possible. |