Armoire
A large cabinet for storing clothes, a bar, or a TV set.
Baseboard
A board that goes around the base of the wall, covering up the seam between the floor and the wall.
Bearing wall
A wall that holds up the weight of the building.
Bolster
A cushion placed on sofas and other furniture in the house.
Casing
Wooden material that surrounds a window or door.
Commode
A small cupboard found next to the bed, previously used for storing chamber pots; also, known as a nightstand.
Finial
A small decorative element attached to the end of a curtain rod; usually has the shape of a ball.
Fixture
Anything attached to the surface of the wall or the floor, such as a sink, bathtub, HVAC unit etc.
Girder truss
Rigid beam that supports other wooden beams holding the roof in place.
Hearth
Floor-level platform in front of the fireplace that catches the embers and sparks flying out of a fire.
HVAC
Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning unit.
Incandescent lighting
Any form of lighting that uses small metal filaments encased in a vacuum and heated by the electric current.
Kiln-dried
Any wood dried in a kiln for the purposes of sealing its pores and preventing the moisture from seeping in and causing it to crack.
Knock-down
Any furniture sold in pieces, which the buyer must assemble on his own.
Lites
Small sections of glass within a larger window, forming a mosaic.
Lumbar pillow
Any small pillow designed to support the lower back, usually found on sofas.
Rebar
Steel rod that goes on the outer edges of a building and reinforces concrete parts of it.
Runner
Any long and narrow rug designed to go into hallways.
Sconce
Hard-wired wall-mounted light fixture.
Sisal
Material extracted from the leaves of the sisal plant, used mostly for rugs.
Sheathing
Outer layer of a roof section or a framed wall.
Slider door
Door that opens side-to-side instead of in and out.
Soffit
Filler element installed above the wall cabinets and below the ceiling in order to fill the gap.
Split Level
Any house which has different heights of floors and ceilings on the same floor.
Stringer
Support that carries the weight of the stair section and the traffic, normally built at an angle.
Stud
A member used to create walls, usually in the vertical framing form.
Termite Flashing
A metal sheet used to block termites gnawing their way into the wooden structure of the house.
Tint
Any decorative color that’s been mixed with white.
Transom window
Small window placed above the doorway.
Tufting
Stitching upholstery in such a way that it creates small folds of fabric known as “tufts”.
Wall Cabinet
Overhead cabinets, hung on the wall, usually above a cabinet installed on the floor.
Wardrobe
Tall cabinet, also known as armoire.
Window sill
Horizontal part of the window found on the outside of the house, projecting outwards.
Wing-back chair
Any armchair that, at head level, has projections on either side.
Xenon
A colorless noble gas, used in lighting equipment.
