"His shoulders hang over the top."

Question

"Students affect a slouch in the chair so sharply angled that the student's rear end rests precariously on the very edge of the seat. His shoulders hang over the top. This is known as the bed position: it permits the student to sleep in relative comfort while at the same time occupying space in the classroom and not being marked absent."

Anyone knows what's the meaning of "His shoulders hang over the top." in this passage?

Thank you very much.

Jrdavis · Accepted Answer

I think it must mean that the shoulders hang over the top of the chair back.
Try it yourself. Depending on the height of your chair-back, you may get the same nice effect.

CalifJim · Answer

His shoulders extend beyond the top of the back of the chair. Probably the center of his back is in contact with the top of the back of the chair. This is only possible with the correct relative proportions of person and chair, of course.

Related concepts:

If a six-foot man sleeps in a five-foot bed, his lower legs and feet will be hanging over the edge of the foot of the bed.

When the roof of a house extends three feet beyond the vertical outer walls of the house, we say the roof has a three-foot overhang.

These are unusual uses of the word hang because they are essentially descriptions of horizontal configurations. (The usual association of hang is vertical, as you know.)

CJ

Silicon · Answer

Thanks CalifJim and Jrdavis. Your explanations really help a lot!

I'm from HK! Nice to meet you all. ^^~

"His shoulders hang over the top."

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