ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Threshing-board

Hello there! So, have you ever seen a farmer’s field where there are lots of grains like wheat or rice? Yes? Excellent! Now imagine that those grains are all attached to long stalks or straws. This is called a "harvest" and it's time for the farmer to separate the grains from the straws in order to use them for food.

In olden days, farmers used a special tool called a "threshing-board" to do this job. It’s basically a flat board made of wood or metal, usually around 6-7 feet long and 4-5 feet wide. The board has sharp teeth running along the edges and also some smaller teeth or nails sticking out from the top.

First, the farmer would spread out the stalks on a flat surface, like the threshing-floor, and start beating them with the threshing-board. The long teeth of the board would strike the stalks and help break apart the grains from the straws. Then the farmer would rake up the broken pieces and toss them into the air, allowing the heavier grains to fall to the ground while the lighter straws blew away.

This process of beating the stalks and separating the grain from the straw is called "threshing". The threshing-board was an important tool for farmers because it helped them prepare their grains for storage and use as food.

So, that’s a threshing-board, it’s like a big wooden tool with sharp teeth to help farmers separate grains from straws. And that’s how farmers used to do it before modern machines! Cool, Isn’t it?
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