QUARREL -- a small diamond-shaped pane of glass.

QUATREFOIL -- a four-lobed foliate design.

QUOINS -- dressed stones at the corner of a building, usually laid so that their faces are alternately large and small.

RAFTERS -- the parallel beams that support a roof surface.

RECTORY -- the residence of a clergyman in charge of a parish.

REEDING -- a decoration made up of a series of parallel convex rows.

REINFORCED CONCRETE -- concrete in which steel rods or mesh are embedded in the forms prior to pouring so the two materials act together for added strength.

RINCEAU -- an undulating ornamental pattern of vines, leaves, and fruits.

ROSE WINDOW -- a circular window filled with tracery, usually in a church.

RUSTICATION -- masonry cut in massive stones, prominently beveled to emphasize the joints.

SASH -- the framework in which panes of glass are set in a window, usually movable for opening and closing.

SCROLL SAW -- a thin hand saw for cutting curves and irregular designs.

SCROLLWORK -- wooden cut-out ornamentation accomplished by a jigsaw or a scroll saw.

SEGMENTAL ARCH -- a slightly rounded arch whose curve is less than a semicircle.

SETBACK -- the recession of the upper stories of a facade, producing a stepped effect and often creating successive terraces.

SGRAFFITO -- a decorative plaster surface created by scratching through the outer coat to reveal a different colored layer underneath.

SHED DORMER -- a dormer with a roof sloping in the same direction as the main roof from which it projects.

SHED ROOF -- a roof having only one sloping plane, with the lower edge supported by posts or a wall.

SHINGLE -- a thin piece of building material used in overlapping courses to cover a roof or exterior wall surface.

SHIPLAP -- wooden sheathing in which the boards are notched so their edges overlap the adjacent boards to make a flush  joint.

SIDE LIGHT -- one of a pair of narrow windows that flank a doorway.

SILL -- the lower horizontal part of a window or door frame.

SKELETON FRAMING -- construction in which a steel or reinforced concrete frame carries the weight of the building.

SKYLIGHT -- a glazed opening facing upward to admit sunlight through a roof.

SKYSCRAPER -- a very tall building.

SOFFIT -- the underside of an overhang, arch, lintel, or other spanning member.

SPANDREL -- a decorative wall panel located in the horizontal space between two windows in a skeleton frame building.

SPANISH ROOFING TILE -- a clay tile with a rounded top and an interlocking flat flange on one side.

SPINDLE -- a short lathe-turned member, such as a baluster.

SPIRE -- a tall conical or polygonal tower roof, tapering upward to a point.

STAINED GLASS -- glass that is hand-painted and fired to achieve a long-lasting pictorial quality, often used in conjunction with
leaded glass. 

STEEL-FRAME -- describing a building in which the weight is supported by a skeleton of steel.

STEEPLE -- a tower and a spire, usually on a church.

STORY -- the space in a building between two successive floor levels.

STRING COURSE -- a continuous projecting horizontal band on an exterior wall surface.

STRUT -- a brace or other structural piece designed to resist pressure in a framework.

STUCCO -- plaster used as a wall covering.

STUD -- an intermediate vertical member in a wooden frame.

SWAG -- a carved ornament consisting of a garland of fruit and flowers sagging between two supports and tied with ribbons.

TABBY -- a concrete building material made by mixing oyster shells and lime.

TABLET -- a flat slab or plaque bearing an inscription.

TENON -- a projection on a construction member that inserts into a socket or mortise on another member to form a snug joint.

TERRA-COTTA -- molded and fired clay building units, larger than bricks and often cast in colorful intricately modeled  panels.

TERRACE -- a level platform elevated above the ground and adjoining a building.

TIE ROD -- a metal rod that passes through a wall or building and is anchored at each end to create structural tension.

TIER -- one of a series of successively higher rows.

TILE -- a flat or curved piece of fired clay used for covering walls, floors, or roofs and also for structural units.

TOWER -- a tall structure rising to a greater height than its surroundings.

TRACERY -- curving mullions forming an ornamental network in the upper part of a window, common in Gothic architecture.

TRANSOM -- an opening for ventilation above a door or window, often glazed and usually with a hinged or pivoting sash.

TREFOIL -- a three-lobed ornamental form.

TRIGLYPH -- a projecting rectangular tablet, vertically channeled and chamfered, that occurs in series on a Doric frieze.

TRUSS -- an assemblage of beams forming a framework, that serves as a bracket to support other members or to bridge a  span.

TUDOR ARCH -- a pointed elliptical arch, composed of small radius curves at the sides that feather out to become nearly  straight lines that meet at a blunt apex.

TURNED WORK -- woodwork that is cut on a lathe.

TURRET -- a small tower, usually at the corner of a building and extending above it.

TUSCAN ORDER -- the simplest of the classic orders of architecture, featuring unfluted columns, simple bases and  capitals, and unadorned entablatures.

TWISTED COLUMN -- a decorative column whose shaft has a spiraled appearance as if twisted along its vertical axis.