Architecture Vocabulary: Top 100 Most Common English Words

Слова по теме архитектуры будут полезны в экзамене IELTS Speaking, так как именно в этой части вы можете столкнуться с вопросами про здания либо инфраструктуру. В IELTS Speaking вам могут задать такие вопросы как «What types of buildings are there where you live?», «Describe a style of architecture that you like.» и так далее. Данная статья, поможет вам улучшить словарный запас и с уверенностью отвечать на такие вопросы в IELTS Speaking.

abutment: structural component supporting the lateral and vertical loading of structures.
arcade: a series of arches carried by columns.
architectonic: the science of architecture.
articulation: a method of jointing elements of an architectural design.
BIM: (“Building Information Modeling”) construction information 3D-model tool.
biomimicry: application of natural environment in construction principles.
bracket: architectural element placed in a corner to strengthen an angle.
building envelope: roof, sub floor, exterior doors, windows and exterior walls.
cladding: components attached to the primary structure of a building to form non-structural, external surfaces such as curtain walling or rainscreen.
cloister: covered walk running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle.
colossal: architectural order based on multilevel columns.
composite: assembly of two different materials working better together than apart.
cornice: crown of an architectural structure rejecting rainwater away from the facade.
cradling: a framework of iron or wood, used to support a ceiling.
curvilinear: consisting of or bounded by curved lines.
denticulate: having dentils.
diagram: a drawing explaining the principles, elements and components of an architectural concept.
diastyle: columns separated by three diameters.
diminish: to cause an architectural element to taper.
dipteral: construction having a double row of columns.
drum: cylindrical blocks of stone composing a column.
elevation: a representation to scale of the external face of a building or structure.
eurythmy: harmonious proportions of a design or building.
facade: the face of the building with the main entrance.
fenestration: all of the openings in the building envelope such as windows, doors, and skylights.
filler: materials combined together to make them cheaper or lighter.
flamboyant: French Gothic style of architecture characterized by a wavy flame appearance.
floor plan: a drawing to scale giving a bird’s eye view of the dimension and spatial relationships between objects and fixtures of a structure.
floriated: architectural structure with ornamentation based on flowers and leaves.
fluting: a furrow dug in a column.
foliation: ornamentation consisting of foliage.
folly: a structure deliberately built as an ornamente to serve as a conversation piece or to lend interest to a view.
form: the shape and structure of something.
galilee: the entrance of a porch or chapel.
galleria: a central promenade or court usually separating a shopping centre in two.
ground plan: a drawing of the ground floor of a building.
hexastyle: a portico or façade with six columns, usually representative of Greek temples.
hierarchy: importance of a form or space by its size, shape, or placement relative to the other forms and spaces, based on how noticeable they are.
high-pitched: a roof having high and tilted slopes.
hip: the external angle where the sloping sides of a roof meet.
homogeneous: an architectural structure composed of parts that are all of the same nature or kind, or appearing as uniform.
hypostyle: closed space with a roof supported by columns.
imbricate: having tiles, shingles, or slates creating an overlapping cover.
intercolumniation: the proportional spacing between columns.
joggle post (or king post): a central vertical post or beam consisting of two timbers joined to each other by joggles, working in tension to support a beam below.
juncture: intersection of two different materials, influencing how the building will age.
juxtaposition: two parts being placed close together or side-by-side, permitting comparison or contrast.
lancet: diagonal arch belonging to the Gothic style, shaped as the tip of a spearhead.
lead holder: a mechanical drawing tool in which architects can use different types of lead to create different types of lines.
lierne: a short rib connecting the intersections of the primary ribs, representative of the Gothic vaulting.
lintel (or summer): horizontal piece (of wood, stone, metal) forming the superior part of an opening and supporting a structure.
listed building: an officially recognized and protected building with a particular historical or architectural interest.
loggia: a covered and closed on the sides balcony, acting as an integral part of the housing.
massing: a structure in two or three dimensions.
member: a component part of a building or structure.
merge: to combine, blend, or unite so as to blur distinctions and to make it look similar to what is around it.
module: conventional unit of measure adopted to regulate the various parts of a whole.
naos: central part of a Greek sanctuary and intended to receive the statue of the god in an Egyptian temple.
order: proportions, shapes and ornamentation of any part built in elevation (Doric, Ionic, Corinthian, Tuscan, and Composite).
orientation: the position of a structure based on the east-west axis.
parti: organizing decisions behind an architect’s design, presented as a basic diagram or a simple statement (coming from the French expression “parti pris”).
piloti: the traditionally wooden piles driven into the ground and intended to support a construction out of water or above the ground.
polychromy: the art of using several colors.
post and lintel (or trabeated system): construction system where robust horizontal elements are held by robust vertical elements, such as Stonehenge for example.
postiche: ornament of sculpture encrusted in an architectural decoration.
profile: a representation of an object in contour or outline.
prostyle: temples having only one row of columns in front.
pulvinate: curved convexly, with a swelling.
queen post: tension member in a truss that can span longer openings than a king post.
rampant: an element which is inclined and so arranged as to provide a slope.
rendering: the art of creating three-dimensional images or animations in order to demonstrate the attributes of an architectural design.
respond: a pilaster bonded into the wall and supporting an arch or a lintel.
return: an architectural feature forming an angle with the main part.
rhythm: a patterned repetition of elements in the space, a recurrence of lines, shapes, forms or colors.
ribbon development: houses built in a continuous row along a main road, with individual accesses.
rise: the height of an architectural structure.
rusticate: a masonry treatment used to separate blocks thanks to large joints and decorated with a textured design.
scale: how the sizes of different architectural elements relate to one another, based on a reference standard.
sexpartite: a rib vault divided into (or composed of) six parts, by two diagonal ribs and three transverse ribs.
shaft: a column or structural member that supports a vaulting rib, between the capital and the base.
shell: the part separating the external space of the structure of a building from the internal one.
soffit: the underside of an architectural element, different from the base.
spatiality: anything relating to, involving, or having the nature of space, in order to place and measure an architectural structure in the space.
springing: the voussoirs requiring support from below until the keystone has been set in place, this is the level where an arch or vault rises from this support.
stilts: structure or building to stand at a distance above the ground, vertical piers between the impost and the springing.
storey: a floor or level of a building or architectural structure, that could be used by people.
stria: a narrow channel, a set of parallel stripes on a structure.
stringer: a long horizontal beam used for structural purposes, supporting cross members in floors or ceilings.
stylobate: a pedestal supporting a colonnade, with molding, base and cornice around the perimeter of a building.
subbase: the lowest part laid on the subgrade, on which the base course layer is located, to help prevent pumping of fine-grained, subgrade soils.
summertree (or bressummer): a stone on the top of a column, pier, or wall that supports a wall, arch, lintel above a gap or opening.
supercolumnar: one colonnade above another or placed above a column.
surbase: the uppermost part of a pedestal above the base of a structure.
sustainable (or green building): the structure, and the processes related to this structure, environmentally responsible and energy efficient, in order to ensure the building’s ecological balance.
symmetry: element that we can divide in two parts and superimpose perfectly, without anything exceeding.
tailpiece (or tail beam): a piece forming an end, embedded in a wall.
tectonics: the science or art of construction, including shaping, ornamenting, or assembling materials.
texture: the structure given to a surface, playing with the size, shape, light and proportions of the architectural components.
truncated: cut by subtracting a significant part.
uniformity: architectural structures being identical, homogeneous, or regular.