As with all areas of study and professions, architecture has a distinct vocabulary. Entering the world of architecture, you will encounter a myriad of new words and phrases. A firm understanding of architectural terminology will help guide you every step of the way. These vocabulary words describe a range of concepts from styles and materials to specific techniques.
Whether you’re in a studio during the school year or interning at a firm over the summer, knowing your ABCs of architecture will come in handy.
Aesthetic
Describes how a space looks, and more importantly, feels.
Architecture
The subject itself! According to Brittannica, architecture is described as “the art and technique of designing and building.”
Brief
Also known as a design brief, an architectural brief is a document prepared for a design project developed by a person or team in consultation with the client.
Built Environment
The built environment captures all aspects of our lives. It includes systems that impact communities such as housing, water, electricity, and transportation.
Buttress
A very specific kind of architectural element that offers structural support from the exterior of a building or adjacent to a structural member
Charette
A design charrette is a short, collaborative workshop where a team works together to solve a design problem. Participants are given a design brief and must collaborate to present a design solution.
Circulation
Collection of spaces that allow for the flow of people to pass through these spaces.
Decarbonization
A system that aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and combat climate change.
Design Interventions
Prototypes that provoke real-world action and intervene in human behavior.
Diagramtic
An approach using simple shapes, lines, and colors to explain the core idea or “why” behind a design. It strips away complex details. It shows how spaces and movements relate to each other at a quick glance.
Eclecticism
A style that combines two or more architectural styles, drawing inspiration from a wide range of sources, design eras, and cultural influences to create a cohesive and unique aesthetic.
Enfilade
A suite of rooms formally aligned in a row so that their doors open onto a single axis, creating a continuous, uninterrupted vista; useful in places like museums.
Fenestration
The arrangement of windows and doors on the elevations of a building.
Floor Plan
A detailed drawing that illustrates the design of a room or building from an above view. Floor plans can include walls, windows, doors, and other features.
Fabrication
The process of creating physical models, components, or even entire structures using various techniques and materials. Some schools may have a “fabrication lab” dedicated to producing the materials needed to build models.
Genius Loci
A Latin term meaning “the genius of the place,” used to describe the spirit or feeling of a space.
Geodesic
The shortest possible path between two points on a curved surface or in a curved mathematical space; serves as the equivalent of a straight line in curved spaces, such as an arc on a sphere.
Geodesic Dome
A hemispherical, self-supporting structure built from a complex network of triangles; the triangles interlock to distribute structural stress across the entire form, making them incredibly lightweight, yet strong.
Hierarchy
Hierarchy in architecture often establishes the guiding visual element of a structure. Hierarchy can be established by the architect’s consideration of aspects like size, color, shape, and location to manipulate the viewer’s experience of a given piece of architecture.
Human-Scale
The proportion of a space in relation to the height and size of a human body.
Interiority
Interiority is the way that spatial features behave and present themselves to build a complete picture of how life is experienced.
Interdisciplinary
Used to describe something that extends beyond multiple categories or disciplines.
Jamb
The sides of doorways; structurally important areas because they transfer loads around the doorway and provide structural security for the door itself; can be deepened to emphasize various effects or differences between spaces.
Juxtaposition
Placing things together to highlight contrasting features or designs.
Keystone
A central, wedge-shaped stone at the top of an arch. It distributes the structure’s weight downward and outward, making arches and vaults stable and capable of withstanding substantial loads over long periods of time.
Liminal Spaces
Transitional areas that exist between two separate places or environments.
Landmark
A building or space that holds outstanding historical or cultural importance.
Licensure
The process of becoming a licensed architect, administered by the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB).
Masonry
The construction of buildings with brick, clay, stone, or similar materials.
Materiality
The use of various materials in building structures.
Mezzanine
A partial intermediate floor built between two main floors of a building; maximizes unused vertical space.
Niche
A recess constructed in a wall that is used to display decorative objects like statues.
Nook
A small, recessed, or sheltered space tucked away within a larger room.
Nuance
A subtle difference or distinction in expression, meaning, response, etc.
Oculus
A circular opening in the center of a dome or in a wall; originates in classical architecture, a feature of Byzantine and Neoclassical architecture.
Oriel Window
A curved window projecting out of an upper story.
Orientation
The positioning of a building on a lot in relation to the sun, wind, view, and noise.
Pastiche
The imitation of the style or character of other buildings designed by other architects.
Preservation
The practice of protecting and maintaining buildings, structures, and other physical elements of the built environment.
Quoin
An external solid angle of a wall, or one of the stones forming such an angle, usually having a different material, size, or texture than the rest of the structure.
Rendering
The process of creating 2D and 3D images of a proposed architectural design. The goal is to illustrate a lifelike experience of how a space or building will look before it is built, accurately representing design intent.
Regenerative
The practice of engaging the natural world as the medium for and generator of architecture.
Sketch
A quick, informal drawing of a building, space, or object. A sketch can also depict an idea or design plan.
Studio
An immersive class where architecture students receive hands-on instruction. During studio, students will collaborate with classmates, receive feedback from faculty and peers, iterate on projects, and work on their final presentations.
Structure
The underlying system or framework that supports and stabilizes a building or constructed entity. It is the ‘skeleton’ that ensures a building stands upright and withstands external forces such as wind, earthquakes, and the weight of its occupants.
Textiles
Any flexible, fiber-based material used as a building component.
Typology
The classification of buildings based on their form, function, and spatial organization.
Urbanism
The study of how inhabitants of urban areas such as towns and in cities and how they interact with the built environment.
Verandah
A roofed, open-air porch or gallery attached to the exterior of a building.
Vista
A view, typically of a distant landscape, that is seen through an open window or from a high vantage point.
Vernacular
A type of local or regional construction, using traditional materials and resources from the area where the building is located.
Visualization
The process of translating technical blueprints and 3D models into lifelike digital images or interactive experiences.
Weight
[Line] weight refers to the thickness or darkness of a line drawn on a plan or blueprint.
Xeriscaping
The practice of designing landscapes with minimal use of water/to reduce or eliminate the need for irrigation; promoted in regions that do not have accessible, plentiful, or reliable supplies of fresh water.
Yurt
A portable, round tent with a sturdy wooden frame covered by felt/skins/waterproof canvas; traditionally used by nomads in Central Asia.
Zone/Zoning
The local laws that decide how land is used (like for homes or stores) and how big buildings can be.
