cable molding decorative molding with the appearance of stranded cable or rope.
camberbeam a beam that curves upward slightly.
camber window an arched window.
campanile a freestanding bell tower.
cantilever a beam or truss that projects beyond its supporting foundation, wall, or column. Also, a bracket supporting a balcony.
capital the uppermost member, often ornately carved, of a column or pilaster.
caryatid the figure of a woman used in place of a supporting column, pilaster, or pier.
casement window a hinged window that swings open along its length.
catslide a long, sloping roof, as on a saltbox-style house.
checkerwork in a wall or pavement, masonry laid in a checkerboard pattern.
Christian door a colonial door in which the exterior paneling forms a cross.
cilery the decorative carving around a column's capital.
clapboard overlapping horizontal wood siding used on home and building exteriors. Also known as bevel siding or lap siding.
classicism style inspired by ancient Roman, ancient Greek, and Italian Renaissance architecture.
clerestory the windowed upper story of the nave and choir in a church.
cloister a covered or sheltered walkway surrounding an open courtyard.
cloister garth the courtyard surrounded by a cloister.
clustered column several columns massed together to form one large supporting member.
coffer any one of the decorative sunken panels in a coffered ceiling.
coffered ceiling a highly decorative ceiling characterized by sunken panels.
collar beam a beam or plank that ties together two opposing rafters in a roof.
colonnade a series of columns supporting an entablature.
column a long, vertical, and cylindrical support member that includes a base, a shaft, and a capital.
Composite order in classical architecture, one of the five orders, specifically a composite of Corinthian and Ionic orders.
concourse any open space in a building for accommodating large crowds.
console a decorative bracket, often of wood or stone, projecting from a wall and supporting a cornice, a door head, a bust, or a shelf.
console table a table or large shelf attached to a wall and supported by consoles.
coping the top portion, usually slanting to shed water, of a wall or roof. Also known as copestone or capstone.
corbel a masonry or wood bracket, often decorative, projecting from a wall and supporting a cornice, arch, or other overhanging member.
corbeling a layering of masonry in which each course or row of bricks or stones projects further from the wall than the last row.
corbie steps step or stairlike projections running up the gables of a pitched roof, found on many houses of the 17th century. Also known as catsteps or crowsteps.
Corinthian order the most ornate of the five classical orders, characterized by a voluted, bell-shaped capital with acanthus leaf carvings, and an intricately decorated entablature.
cornerstone an inscribed stone situated near the base of any corner in a building, sometimes ceremoniously laid and hollowed out to store historical documents or objects.
cornice a molded projection that crowns a building or wall. Also, any ornamental molding around the walls just below a ceiling.
cosmati cut-stone mosaic inlay forming geometric patterns.
course one row of bricks or stones in a wall.
cove ceiling a ceiling that curves down to meet the walls.
crocket an ornament, usually in the form of a leaf, found along the sloping or vertical edges of gothically styled spires, pinnacles, and gables.
cupola a small dome or domelike structure on a roof.
curtail the spiraling or scroll-like termination at the end of a stair railing.
dais a raised platform for speakers.
day one division in a window.
deadlight any window not designed to open.
decastyle of a portico, having 10 columns or rows of 10 columns.
dentil any of the small, square blocks projecting like teeth beneath an entablature.
architecture TERMS 25
diamond work masonry laid out to form the shape of diamonds in a wall or pavement.
distyle having two columns.
Doric order in classical architecture, the least adorned of the orders, characterized by a heavy, fluted column and a simple capital.
dormer a structure or gable projecting out from a sloping roof and containing a window.
drip the protective molding over the top of a window or door to discharge rainwater.
Dutch door a split door consisting of separate bottom-opening and top-opening segments.
eaves the portion of a lower roof projecting beyond the wall.
embedded column a column that is partially within the face of a wall. Also known as an engaged column.
English bond a bricklaying method characterized by alternating courses of headers (heads of the bricks facing out) and stretchers (laid out horizontally in the direction of the wall).
entablature in a classical order, the upper section resting on the capital, consisting of the architrave, the frieze, and the cornice.
facade the exterior face of a building.
fanlight a semicircular window with radiating sash bars, usually placed over a door.
fascia a flat trim board around the eaves or gables of roofs.
fenestra a small window.
fenestration the design and arrangement of windows in a building.
finial an ornament at the top of a spire or pinnacle.
Flemish bond brickwork in which every other brick laid is a header.
floriated decorated with floral carvings or patterns.
florid highly ornate, heavily embellished.
fluting grooves or channels, as in the shaft of a column.
flying buttress a bar of masonry rising from a pier or arch and abutting against a roof or vault to receive thrust.
French door a door with glass panes running nearly its full length and usually hung in pairs. Also known as a casement door.
French roof a mansard roof.
fresco a painting on plaster.
fret a banded ornament consisting of geometrical patterns.
frieze the middle horizontal member of an entablature, often decorated with carvings of leaves or human and animal figures.
gable the triangular wall portion at either end of a pitched roof.
gableboard see bargeboard.
gable roof a roof having gables.
gambrel roof a roof pitched twice on each side, with the lowest pitch being the steepest.
gargoyle a grotesque sculpture projecting from a roof gutter and acting as a spout for wastewater or rainwater.
gingerbread highly decorative woodwork of gingerbread-style houses of the 19th century.
grotesque sculptured ornamentation representing animal or human forms in bizarre and fanciful ways.