coign of vantage

American  

noun

1. a good position for observation, judgment, criticism, action, etc.

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coign of vantage British  

noun

1. an advantageous position or stance for observation or action

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Etymology

Origin of coign of vantage

First recorded in 1595–1605

Example Sentences

Looking around for the best coign of vantage, Mr. Herriott noticed the narrow arbor covered by a thick growth of butter-bean vines, where he stood secure from observation.

From A Speckled Bird by Wilson, Augusta J. Evans

The text of this book is frequently corrupt; but the evident sense of these ungrammatical lines 3-5 is that the envoys were allowed to watch the unsuspecting damsels from some hidden coign of vantage.

From Chaucer and His England by Coulton, G. G.

The excitement was intense among the passengers, who thronged the bulwarks at every coign of vantage, eagerly scanning the dark, silent sea.

From The Red Derelict by Mitford, Bertram

You can almost call it a hobby of mine, to dwell upon the fortunes of the men and women who pass across the great stage on which I have an obscure coign of vantage.

From Captain Macedoine's Daughter by McFee, William

Stratford-on-Avon, too, belongs to this part of the country,—a little old-world town, where the bust of Shakespeare looks down upon you from every coign of vantage.

From With the World's Great Travellers, Volume 3 by Various