GLOSSARY OF ARCHITECTURAL
Terms   T - Z

• TENON In a timber connection a projecting tongue that is inserted into a mortise.
• TERRA COTTA Fired clay (literally 'baked earth') commonly shaped in a mould and frequently glazed after firing.
• TERREPLEIN In military architecture, the flat roof of a fortification, on which ordnance was mounted.
• TIE BEAM In a roof truss, a principal beam that spans from one wall to the other.
• TRANSEPT In a church, a projecting space that is perpendicular to the nave; the nave and transepts intersect at the crossing to produce a cruciform plan.
• TREFOIL A decorative form characterized by three lobes.
• TRIFORIUM In a church, a passage or gallery above the nave arcade and below the clerestory.
• TRIGLYPH In classical architecture, one of a series of raised ornamental panels in a Doric frieze that consist of three vertical bands; triglyphs alternate with metopes.
• TRUSS A structural framework, made of either timber or metal, that is composed of individual members fastened together in a triangular arrangement.
• TYMPANUM The panel, usually semicircular located between the underside of an arch and the top of a doorway within the arch; also the triangular space enclosed by a pediment.
• URBAN ARCHAEOLOGY Refers to the milieu of old and new artifacts populating the urban landscape.
• VAULT An arched ceiling constructed of masonry materials; the undersurface, or soffit, is usually curved. If the vault is generated from a series of pointed, rather than round, arches, it is called a groin vault.
• VENEER A very thin leaf of wood that is used to cover doors or articles of furniture which are made of a low grade wood.
• VOLUTE In classical architecture, the spiral ornament on a capital.
• VOUSSOIR One of the wedge-shaped masonry blocks out of which an arch or vault is composed. The central voussoir is the keystone.