top piece

See also: toppiece

top piece (plural top pieces)

(shoemaking) The part of the heel on a shoe or boot that comes into contact with the ground.
- 1834, John O'Sullivan, The Art and Mystery of the Gentle Craft‎, page 50:
  Then pare the top piece to the size and form you intend it to be; but that you should always do before the heel is sewed, for now you are confined to the channel.
- 2010, Paul Frowen, Maureen O'Donnell, Donald Lorimer, Gordon Burrow, Neale's Disorders of the Foot, Elsevier Health Sciences, →ISBN, page 457:
  On the outermost part of the heel, which is in direct contact with the ground when the shoe is worn, a top piece is applied.

part of the heel on a shoe

English