# Is there a widely accepted name in English for this shape: oval with pointed ends? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 6, 2026, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454 "2026-02-06T21:27:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2026, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/1 "2026-02-06T21:27:37Z")
I have tried Googling this, and the only answer I got was a gem cut called Marquise, which I believe is the shape I am looking for, but its usage seems limited to gems. It might also be called a cat’s eye shape, but that is somewhat casual and imprecise. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2026, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/2 "2026-02-06T21:29:29Z")
I don’t know if it’s commonly accepted, but I’d call it football shaped. ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2026, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/3 "2026-02-06T21:34:49Z")
I’d go with lenticular, that is something shaped like a lens ---
**Author:** ![Banksiaman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banksiaman/32/3334_2.png) [@Banksiaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banksiaman)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2026, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/4 "2026-02-06T21:34:53Z")
Lenticular - lentil-shaped ---
**Author:** ![Banksiaman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banksiaman/32/3334_2.png) [@Banksiaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banksiaman)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2026, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/5 "2026-02-06T21:37:12Z")
The word lens comes from the lentil-like cross section. Like Anne Elk’s dinosaurs they are thin at one end, much thicker in the middle and thin at the other end. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2026, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/6 "2026-02-06T22:55:40Z")
Thank you for lenticular, a word I had not come across before (that I remember). That word does seem to be fairly specialized to refer to lenses and lentils, so I’m going to keep hoping that there is a more universal term. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2026, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/7 "2026-02-06T22:56:08Z")
Vesica piscis, which isn’t English but would be recognized as Latin in Christianity, other religions, and sacred geometry. It’s derived from a single circle and when iterated 6 times, forms the Seed of Life in sacred geometry. It’s everywhere in churches once you start looking. > **[Vesica Piscis](https://pardesco.com/blogs/news/vesica-piscis?srsltid=AfmBOoqmDZxV9oHeJcM3uP1IACJGFTFMaAiURCDM2yM7o93yhp5aNbxo)** > >   Vesica Piscis Geometric and Mathematical Exploration Formation of the Vesica Piscis: The vesica piscis emerges from the intersection of two equal circles such that each circle's center lies on the circumference of the other. This configuration... Notice the relationship to the Ichthys. [![](https://www.thepeculiarbrunette.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Sacred-Geometry-Example-of-Ichthys-From-Vesica-Piscis-symbol.webp) ](https://www.thepeculiarbrunette.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Sacred-Geometry-Example-of-Ichthys-From-Vesica-Piscis-symbol.webp) [![](https://www.entertheearth.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/seedoflifeincircle1.jpg?x89826) ](https://www.entertheearth.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/seedoflifeincircle1.jpg?x89826) [![](https://www.alziend.be/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/39_Stone-pyxis-300x300.jpg) ](https://www.alziend.be/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/39_Stone-pyxis-300x300.jpg) Also: A form of mandorla. [![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/75/Codex_Bruchsal_1_01v_cropped.jpg) ](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/75/Codex_Bruchsal_1_01v_cropped.jpg) Also: A vulva. [https://i0.wp.com/live.staticflickr.com/567/21598965753\_740e8ce584\_c.jpg?resize=759%2C800&ssl=1](https://i0.wp.com/live.staticflickr.com/567/21598965753_740e8ce584_c.jpg?resize=759%2C800&ssl=1) ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2026, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/8 "2026-02-06T23:38:33Z")
Lenticular to me means one of those 3D printed cards. That’s the only place I’ve ever heard that term. I’d never associate it with a shape. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2026, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/9 "2026-02-06T23:44:15Z")
Look, if you don’t shut up I shall shoot you. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2026, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/10 "2026-02-06T23:45:50Z")
My first instinct is to call it a quenelle, but that’s because I watch too many cooking competitions on TV and that’s what it makes me think of. > **[Quenelle](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quenelle)** > > A quenelle (.mw-parser-output .IPA-label-small{font-size:85%}.mw-parser-output .references .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-small{font-size:100%}French pronunciation: \[kə.nɛl\]) is a mixture of creamed fish or meat, sometimes combined with breadcrumbs, with a light egg binding, formed into an egg-like shape, and then cooked. The usual preparation is by poaching. Formerly, quenelles were often used as a garnish in haute cuisine. To By... [![](https://media-cdn2.greatbritishchefs.com/media/mwnjnsdz/img15024.whqc_468x312q80fpt476fpl495.jpg) ](https://media-cdn2.greatbritishchefs.com/media/mwnjnsdz/img15024.whqc_468x312q80fpt476fpl495.jpg) Often they make things into a “quenelle shape”. As noted in Wikipedia: > By extension, a quenelle may also be another food made into a similar shape, such as ice cream, sorbet, butter, or mashed potato quenelles. I’m not sure that term is used outside of the culinary world, though. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2026, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/11 "2026-02-06T23:47:07Z")
In recent years, I’ve seen the word “lenticular” used to describe a certain type of high-altitude clouds that have, more than once, prompted calls to authorities to report UFO sightings, in areas that don’t usually see them. > **[Lenticular Clouds: An Unusual Sight for The Pennines](https://frontierbushcraft.com/2011/12/22/lenticular-cloud-an-unusual-sight-for-the/)** > > Lenticular clouds - Altocumulus Lenticularis - are lens-shaped and more commonly associated with high mountains than the dales of northern England... I always called the shape described in the OP as a “pointy-ended oval.” ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2026, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/12 "2026-02-07T03:34:05Z")
> [@Banksiaman](#): > > Like Anne Elk’s dinosaurs they are thin at one end, much thicker in the middle and thin at the other end. That’s just a theory - her theory. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2026, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/13 "2026-02-07T04:17:13Z")
Evil eye. 👁 ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2026, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/14 "2026-02-07T04:34:09Z")
The ichthys arcs are flattened toward the fish’s tail, rather than being true circle arcs with constant curvature. But yeah, I think vesica piscis (literally “fish bladder”) for the symmetrical shape formed by intersecting circle arcs is the closest thing to a standard term for this shape. Given that the construction of the vesica piscis seems to assume that the two intersecting circles pass through each other’s centers, and the OP might have been seeking something a bit more general, I propose that we use the term “fish figure” (from the matsya or fish shape in Sanskrit geometry) to mean the symmetrical pointed oval formed by any two intersecting congruent circle arcs. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2026, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/15 "2026-02-07T04:34:48Z")
> [@FlikTheBlue](#): > > I’d go with lenticular, that is something shaped like a lens Wikipedia calls it a [lens](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lens_(geometry)), though a geometric not an optical one. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2026, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/16 "2026-02-07T04:35:59Z")
Yeah, “lens” is probably a better choice than “fish figure” for a standard name, given its already wide use. ---
**Author:** ![Reeses\_Monkey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reeses_monkey/32/2885_2.png) [@Reeses\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeses_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2026, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/17 "2026-02-07T05:00:59Z")
I learned the word “lenticular” from a lecture about the Smithfield St bridge in Pittsburgh, PA. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2026, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/18 "2026-02-07T05:10:59Z")
Yes, I can see that. And somehow “lenticular” sounds like a good word to use for a bridge, better than lens shaped. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2026, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/19 "2026-02-07T07:10:35Z")
“Lemon shaped.” ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2026, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454/20 "2026-02-07T07:36:14Z")
That’s absolutely the correct name for the 3-D version of the shape: > **[Lemon (geometry)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemon_(geometry))** > > In geometry, a lemon is a geometric shape that is constructed as the surface of revolution of a circular arc of angle less than half of a full circle rotated about an axis passing through the endpoints of the lens (or arc). The surface of revolution of the complementary arc of the same circle, through the same axis, is called an apple. > The apple and lemon together make up a spindle torus (or self-crossing torus or self-intersecting torus). The lemon forms the boundary of a convex set, while its ... [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-widely-accepted-name-in-english-for-this-shape-oval-with-pointed-ends/1027454.md?page=2)