Glossary of construction terms

adhesion – strong, firm contact between surfaces;

bituminous felt – a roof-covering material that is treated with a mineral substance;

carpenter – a person who makes and repairs wooden objects and structures;

carriage – the support underneath a staircase;

cement – a) the process of bonding two surfaces together; b) a combination of limestone and silica used in making concrete;

chipboard – a hard material made out of very small pieces of wood which have been pressed together. It is often used for making doors and furniture;

cladding – one material that covers another;

concrete – a mixture of materials, such as cement, sand, gravel and water, that bond into a stronger mass;

corrugated iron a thin structural sheet made of iron or steel, formed with alternating ridges and troughs;

covering – the external material that is laid over the roof structure to protect the inside of the building;

course – a complete layer of bricks including the mortar;

crack – a narrow space between two surfaces which have broken or been moved apart;

crew – a group of people who work closely together;

dead loads – these are the weights of the fixed parts of the building such as the walls, floors, roofs and fitting;

decay – rot or decompose through the action of bacteria and fungi;

deflection – when a level beam or surface bends downward from a horizontal line;

density – the proportion of a mass to bulk or volume;

dpc – a layer of moisture-proof material laid on brickwork to prevent rising damp in walls;

dpm – a layer of moisture-proof material laid under a concrete slab and screed to prevent rising damp in floors;

drain – a pipe to carry waste water or rainwater away from a building;

dye – a natural or synthetic substance used to add a colour to or change the colour of something;

eaves – the bottom end of the roof where it meets the wall;

fall – the slope required on flat roofs for water run-off;

fascia – a thin timber board that is fixed to the end of rafters or roof joints to support the gutters;

flight – a series of steps between floors or a floor and landing;

formwork – an arrangement of wooden boards, bolts, etc., used to shape reinforced concrete while it is setting;

frame – a solid timber or metal structure fixed to a wall;

going – the horizontal distance between the risers;

hardcore – broken brick or stone used as a base for ground-floor concrete slabs;

header – a brick laid in a wall so that the smallest surface is visible;

hinge – the joint on which a door turns;

hip – the point where two inclined roof surfaces meet over an external angle;

honeycomb sleeper walls – brick or block walls built over oversite concrete so that air can circulate underneath;

in situ – constructing something, such as lintel, in position;

insulation – the material used to reduce energy loss in walls and roofs;

ironmongery – metal hardware fitted to doors and windows;

jack rafter – a short rafter that spans the hip and eaves or valley and ridge;

joint – the point where two surfaces or pieces meet;

joist – a steel or timber beam that supports a floor or roof;

kiln – a large oven for burning, drying, or processing something, such as porcelain or bricks;

masonry – building work in stone, bricks or blocks;

member – a piece, which is usually timber or metal, that forms part of an entire structure;

mortar – a mixture of cement and sand used in brick and brickwork;

mould – a hollow container used to give shape to molten or hot liquid material when it cools and hardens;

moulding – a shaped piece of timber;

natural foundation – the ground underneath the base of the building after excavation;

non-load-bearing wall – a wall that doesn’t carry the weight of a structure above it;

nosing – the part of the tread that projects beyond the riser;

pitch – the angle formed by the slope of the roof;

purlin – a beam that supports the rafters or roof sheeting;

raft foundation – a reinforced concrete slab used in ground with poor bearing capacity;

rafter – the timber member that spans from the eaves to the ridge in a pitched roof;

reinforced concrete – concrete strengthened by embedded steel bars or mesh;

ridge tile – a tile that caps the top of the roof;

ridge – a timber at the apex of the roof that takes the tops of the rafters;

riser – the vertical surface of a step;

roof – the structure forming the upper covering of a building;

shrinkage – a decrease in the size or amount of something;

site – an area of ground on which a building is constructed;

slab – a large area of thin concrete;

soffit – the horizontal board that can be fixed to finish the roof structure at the eaves;

span – the horizontal distance between the supports of structural members such as the rafters;

subsoil – the soil below ground level after excavation of the topsoil;

substructure – the part of the building below ground level;

threshold – the access point in the doorway where enter or exit are;

tread – the horizontal surface of a step where the feet are placed;

valley – the point where two inclined roof surfaces meet over an internal angle;

ventilation – the method of circulating fresh air into a room;

verge – the edge of a roof that meets a gable wall;

wall plate – the timber member fixed to the top of a wall to secure a flat roof joist or rafter;

water bar – a metal bar fitted into the cill of an external door to prevent water flowing inside;

water table – the natural level of water in the ground;

wind loads – the force on a structure arising from the impact of wind on it.