Architectural Glossary: Terms and Definitions
Architectural Glossary
Common Terms and Definitions
B
Bolt: A bar made of wood or metal that slides into a socket and is used to fasten doors and gates.
C
Clash: A conflict, as between opposing or irreconcilable ideas.
Contractor: A company that agrees to furnish materials or perform services at a specified price, especially for construction work.
Cross-Section: A section formed by a plane cutting through an object, usually at right angles to an axis.
Cutaway: A model or diagram of an object with part of the outer layer removed so as to reveal the interior.
D
Deck: A platform extending horizontally from one side of a ship to the other.
Design Brief: A comprehensive written document for a design project developed collaboratively by a person representing the business need for design and the designer. The document focuses on the desired results of the design, not aesthetics.
Ductwork: A group or system of ducts (tubes, pipes, or canals) by which a substance, especially a fluid or gas, is transported.
E
Elevation: A scale drawing of the side, front, or rear of a structure.
Exploded View: An illustration or diagram of a construction that shows its parts separately but in positions that indicate their proper relationships to the whole.
F
Fixing: The act of placing securely, making stable or firm.
Flange: A protruding rim, edge, rib, or collar, as on a wheel or a pipe shaft, used to strengthen an object, hold it in place, or attach it to another object.
Floodlight: Artificial light in an intensely bright and broad beam.
H
Handrail: A narrow railing to be grasped with the hand for support.
K
Kick-Off Meeting: The first meeting in a project.
L
Liaise: To communicate and maintain contact (with).
M
Model: A small object, usually built to scale, that represents in detail another, often larger object.
N
Note: A short written statement giving any kind of information.
O
Open-Plan Office: An office designed to have working meetings on specific projects.
P
Plan: A drawing or diagram made to scale showing the structure or arrangement of something.
Preliminary Drawing: A drawing that is more developed and elaborate than a brief, often to scale.
Premises: A building or part of a building. Also, land and the buildings on it.
S
Scale Rule: A strip of wood, metal, or other material, having straight edges graduated usually in millimeters or inches, used for measuring and drawing straight lines.
Schematic: A structural or procedural diagram, especially of an electrical or mechanical system.
Shear: The act, process, or fact of shearing (cutting with shears or scissors).
Sketch: An undetailed drawing or painting often made as a preliminary study.
Sprinkler: A device with perforations through which water issues from a hose to sprinkle a lawn.
Supersede: To take the place of; replace.
T
Tray: A shallow flat receptacle with a raised edge, used for carrying, holding, or displaying articles.
V
Void: An empty space or vacuum.
W
Working Drawing: A scale drawing of a part or assembly that provides a guide for manufacture.