McMansion

"McMansion" - "Durchschnitts-, null-acht-fuenf-zehn, von der Stange"-Haus. See also The Word Spy - McMansion.

I heard that somebody was referring to my neighborhood as: "Ah, it’s where all the McMansions are, right?". While I can’t argue that point totally, I can’t agree 100% either. There is certainly a somewhat mass-produced, cookie-cutter quality to many neighborhoods around here, as opposed to the older, more organically grown neighborhoods you typically find closer to downtown areas, especially in Europe. But you know what: I like the way it’s done here. [Danger: I may be biased here, cognitive dissonance at work? :-)] North of Boston you typically don’t find fenced in community with identical houses in different colors. Well, there is some of that. What you do find are Colonial homes, lots of Colonials in all shapes and colors, but fortunately, the shapes, colors and orientations vary sufficiently to create what I would call charm. Give some of those neighborhoods 10-20 years with more established trees and you will no longer notice that superimposed golden arch.