Architectual Terminology
By: Emily Pridgen
Arch
A curved structure that is above a doorway or an opening and is supported at the sides or the ends.
Chair Rail
Horizontal moulding on the wall about 3-4 feet from the floor and it is meant to protect the wall from the backs of the chairs.
Column Capital
The top part of a column that joins with whatever it is supporting.
Dormer
A structure projecting from a sloping roof usually housing a vertical window.
Fanlight
A window above a door, usually semicircular or semielliptical, with glazing bars radiating out like a fan
Fluting
Shallow vertical grooves on the shaft of a column.
Masonry
Includes all stone products, all brick products and all concrete block units, including decorative and customized blocks.
Parapet
A low guarding wall at any point of sudden drop, as at the edge of a terrace, roof, balcony, etc.
Pilaster
A shallow rectangular column projecting only slightly from a wall
Portico
A roofed entrance porch supported on at least one side by columns
Roof
The external upper covering of a building, including the frame for supporting the roofing.
Stucco
It is used as decorative coating for walls and ceilings and as a sculptural and artistic material in architecture.
Wainscot
An area of wooden paneling on the lower part of the walls of a room.
Brackets
A projection from a vertical surface providng structural or visual support under corncies, balconies, or any other overhanging member
Chimney
a vertical channel or pipe that conducts smoke and combustion gases up from a fire or furnace and typically through the roof of a building.
Corbel
A projecting bracket of stone, brick, etc which supports a cornice, arch, or oriel
Eaves
That part of a sloping roof that overhangs the wall
Finial
An ornament on top of a peak of an arch or arched structure, e.g. a spire, pinnacle or a gable
Frieze
Any sculptured or richly ornamented band in a building
Molding
A decorative strip used for ornamentation or finishing
Pediment
A triangular gable across a portico, door or window; any similar triangular decorative piece over a doorway, fireplace, etc.
Pillar
a tall vertical structure of stone, wood, or metal, used as a support for a building, or as an ornament or monument.
Quoins
The dressed stones at the corners of buildings usually laid so their faces are alternately large and small
Sill
a shelf or slab of stone, wood, or metal at the foot of a window or doorway.
Tower
A building or part of a building that is exceptionally high in proportion to its width and length
Buttress
A structure, usually brick or stone, built against a wall for support or reinforcement to resist the pressure of a arch or vault
Column
A supporting pillar consisting of a base, a cylindrical shaft, and a capital
Cupola
A dome, usually small, topping a roof or turret
Facade
The exterior face of a building which is the architectural front
Floor Plan
a scale diagram of the arrangement of rooms in one story of a building.
Lintel
A supporting wood or stone beam across the top of an opening, such as that of a window or door or fireplace
Mullions
A vertical member separating (and often supporting) window, doors, or panels set in series
Pendant
A hanging ornament used in vaults and timber roofs of Gothic architecture
Porch
A covered platform, usually having a separate roof, at an entrance to a building
Rafters
any of a series of small, parallel beams for supporting the sheathing and covering of a pitched roof.
Stoop
a porch with steps in front of a house or other building.
Transform Light
a window or pane above a door, whether rectangular or arched