ARCHITECTURAL GLOSSARY

Abstract of Title – A summary of all deeds, wills and legal action to show ownership.
Acoustics - The science of sound. In housing, acoustical materials used to keep
down noise within a room or to prevent it from passing through walls.
Adobe construction – Construction using sun – dried units of adobe soil for walls.
Air-conditioner – An apparatus that can heat, cool, clean, and circulate air.
Air- dried lumber – Lumber that is left in the open to dry rather than being dried by a
kiln.
Air-duct – A pipe, usually made of sheet metal, that conducts air to room from a
central source.
Air Trap – A U-shape pipe filled with water and located beneath plumbing fixtures to
form a seal against the passage of gases and odors.
Alcove – A recessed space connected at the side of a larger room.
Alteration – A change in or addition to an existing building.
Amortization – An installment payment of a loan, usually monthly for a house loan.
Ampere – The unit used in the measure of the rate of flow of electricity.
Anchor bolt - A threaded rod inserted in masonry construction for anchoring the sill
plate to the foundation.
Appraisal – The estimated price of a house which a buyer would pay and the seller
accept for a property. An appraisal is a detailed evaluation of a property.
Apron - The finish board immediately below a window sill. Also the part of the
driveway that leads directly into the garage.
Arcade - A series of arches supported by a row of columns.
Arch - A curve structure that will support itself by mutual pressure and the weight
above its curved opening.
Architect - A person who plans and designs buildings and oversees their
construction.
Balustrade – a series of balusters or posts connected by a rail, generally use for
porches and balconies.
Banister - a handrail
Base - The finish of a room at the junction of the walls and floor.
Baseboard – The finish board covering the interior wall where the wall and floor meet.
Basement - The lowest storey of a building, partially or entirely below ground.
Base plate - A plate usually of steel, upon which a column rest.
Buttress - A narrow strip of board used to cover cracks between the boards in
board and batten sidings.
Batter boards – Boards at exact elevations nailed to post just outside the corner of a
proposed building. Strings are stretched across the boards to locate the
outline of the foundation.
Bay window - A window projecting out from the wall of a building to form a recess in
a room.
Beam - A horizontal structural member that carries the load.
Bearing plate – A plate that provides support for a structural member.
Bearing wall or partition – A wall supporting any vertical load other than its own
weight.
Blueprint - An architectural drawing use by workers to build from. The original
drawing is transferred to a sensitized paper that turns blue with white
lines when printed. Also prints blue lines on white paper.
Brace - Any stiffening member of a framework.
Building Code – A collection of legal requirements for buildings designed to protect
the safety, health and general welfare of people who work and live
with them.
Building line - An imaginary line on a plot beyond which the building cannot
extend.
Building paper – A heavy waterproof paper used over sheathing and subfloor to
prevent passage of air and water.
Building permit - A permit issued by a municipal government authorizing the
construction of a building or structure.
Built-up beam - A beam constructed of smaller members fastened together.
Buttress - A mass of masonry projecting beyond a wall to take trust or
pressure.
Canopy - A projection over windows and doors to protect them from sunlight
and water.
Cantilever - A projecting member supported only at one end.
Check Valve - A valve that permits passage through a pipe only one direction
Chimney - A vertical flue for passing smoke and gases outside a building.
Chord - The principal members of a roof or bridge truss. The upper members
are indicated by the term upper chord. The lower members are
identified by the term lower chord
Circuit - The path of an electric current. The close loop of wire of which an
electric current can flow.
Circuit breaker – A device used to open and close an electric circuit
Clerestory - A set of high window often above a roof line
Collar beam - A horizontal member fastening opposing rafters below the ridge in
roof framing
Column - In architecture; a perpendicular supporting member, circular in
section; in engineering: a vertical structural member supporting loads
acting on or near and in the direction of its longitudinal axis.
Concrete - A mixture of cement sand, and gravel with water
Concrete blocks – Precast, hollow or solid blocks of concrete
Continuous beam – A beam that has three or more supports.
Dead load - All the weight in a structure made up of unmovable materials
Designer - A person who designs houses but is not a registered architect
Detail - To provide specific instruction with a drawing, dimensions, notes, or
specifications.
Dormer - A structure projecting from a sloping roof to accommodate a window
Double Hang - A window having top and bottom sashes each capable of movement
up and down
Downspout - A pipe for carrying of water from the roof to the ground
Drain - A pipe that carrying waste water
Ducts - Sheet metal conductors for warm and cold air distribution.
Eave - The part of the roof that projects over a wall
Elevation - The drawing of the front, side, or rear face of a building.
Excavation - A cavity of pit produced by digging the earth in preparation for
Construction
Fabrication - Work done on parts of a structure at the factory before delivery to the
building site
Fascia - A vertical board nailed on the ends of the rafters. It is part of the cornice
Fixture - A piece of electric or plumbing equipment.
Flashing - The material used for and the process of making watertight the roof
intersections and other exposed places on the outside of the house.
Footing - An enlargement at the lower end of a wall, pier or column to distribute
the load into the ground
Furring - Narrow strips of board nailed upon walls and ceiling to form a straight
surface for the. purpose of attaching wallboards or ceiling tile.
Gable roof - A roof that slopes from two sides only
Garret - An attic
Girder - A horizontal beam supporting the floor joist
Grade - The level of the ground around the building
Grout - A Thin cement mortar used for leveling and filling masonry holes
Gutter - A trough for carrying off water
Gypsum board – a board made of plaster with a covering paper
Head - The upper frame on door or window
Hearth - The part of the floor directly in front of the fireplace, and the floor inside
the fireplace on which the fire is built, it is made of heat resistant masonry
Hip rafter - The diagonal rafter that extends from the plate to the ridge to form a hip
Hip roof - The roof with four sloping sides
House drain – Horizontal sewer piping within a building that receives waste from the
soil stacks
House sewer – The watertight soil pipe extending from the exterior of the foundation
wall to the public sewer
I beam - A steel beam with an I-shaped cross section
Insulation - Materials for obstructing the passage of sound, heat, or cold from one
surface to another
Jack rafter - A short rafter usually use on hip roof
Jalousie - A type of window consisting of a number of long, thin, hinged panels.
Jamb - The sides of doorway or window opening
Kingpost - In a roof truss, the central upright piece
Landing - A platform in a flight of steps
Load- bearing walls - Walls that support the weight from above as well as their own
weight
Louver - A set of fixed or movable slots adjusted to provide both shelter and
ventilation
Masonry - Anything built with stone, bricks, tiles, or concrete
Monolithic - Concrete construction poured and cast in one piece without joints
Mortar - A mixture of cement, sand and water used as a bonding by the mason
for binding bricks and stones
Mortgage - A pledging of property, conditional on the payment of the debt in full
Mullion - A vertical bar in a window that separates window into sections
Newel - A post supporting the handrail at the top or bottom of the stairway
Overhang - The horizontal distance that a roof projects beyond a wall
Panel board – The center for controlling electrical circuits
Parapet - A low wall or railing around the edge of a roof
Parquet flooring – Flooring usually of wood, laid in an alternating or inlaid pattern to
form various designs.
Partition - An interior wall that separates two rooms
Patio - An open court
Perspective - A drawing of an object in three- dimensional form on a plane surface.
A type of drawing that most nearly represent of what is seen by the eye
or camera
Pier - A block of concrete supporting the floor of a building
Piles - Long posts driven into the soil in swampy locations or whenever it is
difficult to secure a firm foundation upon which the foundation footing
is laid
Plan - A horizontal graphic representational section of a building, showing
walls, doors, windows stairs, chimneys and surrounding objects as
walks and landscape
Planks - Material 2 or 3 inches thick and more than 4 wide, such as joists,
flooring and the like
Plaster - A mortar like composition used for covering walls and ceilings.
Usually made of Portland cement mixed with sand and water
Plate - The top horizontal member of a row of studs in a frame wall to carry
the trusses of a roof or to carry the rafters directly. Also a shoe or base
member as of partition or other frame
Porch - A covered area attached in a house at an entrance
Portico - A roof supported by columns whether attached to a building or wholly by
Itself
Portland Cement – A hydraulic cement, extremely hard, formed by burning silica,
lime, and alumina together and then grinding up the mixture
Post - A perpendicular supporting member
Precast - Concrete shape made separately before being used in a structure
Prefabricated houses – Houses that are built in sections or component parts in a
factory, and the assembled at the site
Purlin - A structural member spanning from truss to truss and supporting the
Rafters
Rafters - Structural members used to frame a roof. Several types are common:
hip, jack, valley, and cripple.
Retaining wall – A wall to hold back an earth embankment.
Ridge - The top edge of the roof where two slopes meet
Ridge cap - A wood or metal cap used over roofing at the ridge
Riprap - Stones placed on a slope to prevent erosion. Also broken stone used
for foundation fill
Septic tank - A concrete or steel tank, where sewage is reduced partially by bacterial
action, about half of the sewage solids become gases that escape back
through the vent stack in the house. The other solids and liquids flow
from the tank into the ground through a tile bed
Setback - A zoning restriction on the location of the house on the lot
Sill - The horizontal exterior member below a window or door opening. Also
the wood member placed directly on top of the foundation wall in
frame construction
Specification - The written or printed direction regarding the details of a building or
other construction
Transom - A small window over a door
Ventilation - The process of supplying and removing air by natural or
means to or from any space
Zoning - Building restrictions as to size, location, and type of structures to be
built in specific area