Definition of "squinch" [squinch]

• A structure, such as a section of vaulting or corbeling, set diagonally across the interior angle between two walls to provide a transition from a square to a polygonal or more nearly circular base on which to construct a dome. (noun)
• To squeeze, twist, or draw together: squinched her eyes shut. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Now ef you years me toot twice lak a squinch-owl, you knows dat you got ter go en tell Miss Lou dat"
• "Marse Scoville didn't come back fum dat las 'fight, he say, en he say ter me dat ef he toot twiced lak a squinch-owl dat mean I go ter you, fer he need yo' he'p."
• "He larn ter toot lak a squinch-owl frum Marse Scoville en he tole me dat when he come agin he toot."