People left divided over what to call the end slice of a loaf of bread

Daily Record

6 days ago

People have been left divided over what to call the end slice of a loaf of bread, with some questioning why they never thought of a name for it before while others argue over different terms
It's a detail so trivial that it rarely warrants a second thought – but now, it has sparked a lively debate. The internet has been abuzz with discussions about what to call the end slice of a loaf of bread, leaving many baffled by the variety of names people have confessed to using.
A Reddit user posed a simple question: "What do you call this?" accompanied by an image of the last piece of a loaf of bread. To their astonishment, they were swamped with responses from fellow Redditors – but consensus on a term was nowhere to be found.
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One commenter said: "I call it the heel. My kids call it the butt." While another added: "Can we call it a crust?"
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Another chimed in: "Half of a dad sandwich. Meaning the kids don't want it, so to avoid being wasteful, the dad ends up with two heels for his sandwich bread."
Yet another added: "The end piece. Never heard anyone call it the heel until this comment section."
And someone else admitted: "I didn't even think about it having a name!"
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Furthering the discussion, one person explained: "The crust is the other layer of the bread, but the end piece has crust on the sides as well as one of the faces, so it's majority crust. Thus, it's called the crust."
Finally, another simply stated: "I just call it the end piece."
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The Cambridge Dictionary defines the correct term as 'heel'. But it's not only Brits who are divided over its name; it seems that different countries have their own unique terms for it too.
A recent post on Taste of Home stated: "We've all heard the saying, 'the greatest thing since sliced bread'."
The article reflects on why this old chestnut keeps popping up in conversation. "While it may be a phrase we've heard spoken more times than we ever needed to hear, there's a reason it's become commonplace. Sliced bread is incredible. Sandwiches, subs, toast-you name it, you can make it."
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The statement continued: "Whether it's some fresh ciabatta, banana bread or gluten-free pumpkin bread-it's all delicious. Even just a basic loaf of bread can make a bad day better. That's a fact!
"But we've got some questions. You know, like, what is the end piece of bread called? It's time we settled the debate.
"Norway and Sweden call it the 'skalk.'
"It's referred to as the 'dupka' in Poland, the 'knust' or 'knerzel' in Germany and the 'kapje' in the Netherlands. Scotland has been known to call theirs 'outsiders'.
"Fitting and to the point! You may find they're called 'la tapa' in Spanish or 'patka' in the Czech Republic. Whatever they're called, I know we can all agree about how tasty they can be."