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Paramount Windows and Doors
Wood Windows and Doors

Glossary

Brief Glossary:

Apron:
Horizontal trim board under a window stool.
Awning window:
Has a top-hinged sash.
Balance, or balance spring:
Device for counterbalancing a sliding sash, usually associated with a double-hung window, so sash may be held open at any given position.( See Acme Duplex for the original and still the best balances. www.AcmeDuplex.com) (link)
Bay window:
A window that project out from the wall and extends to ground level.
Bead (also bead stop; stop):
Wood strip against which a swinging sash closes.
Bedding:
Method of glazing.
Bottom rail:
Bottom horizontal part of a window sash.
Bow window (also compass, radial bay window):
A rounded bay window extending from a wall in an arc, typically built with five sashes.
Cabinet window:
Window that extends, typically for  the display of goods.
Cameo window:
Fixed oval window, often found on Colonial Revival Houses.
Casement:
Window sash which either swing in or swing out on side hinges
Casing: Trim - molding or framing around a window or door.
Center-hung sash:
A sash that pivots on pins in the middle of the sash stiles.
Chicago window:
A large fixed sash with a narrow, often movable, sash on either side.
Clerestory or clearstory window
A window in the upper part of a lofty room or ceiling.
Colonial windows:
Windows with small rectangular panes, or divided lites.
Corner window:
Two windows that meet at a corner of a building.
Coupled window: (Double Window)
Two independent windows separated with a mullion.
Dormer window:
Window in a wall that either projects or is recessed on a sloping roof.
Double-hung window:
A window with two sashes, each closing a different part of the window.
Fanlight, sunburst light, fan window, circle-top transom
A half-circle window over a door or window.
Fixed light or fixed sash
Window which doesn't open.
French window:
Two casement sashes hinged to open in the middle. Typically extend to the floor and servs as a door to a porch or terrace.
Gothic-head window:
Window topped with a pointed arch

Hopper light, hopper vent, hopper ventilator:
Inward-opening ash hinged at the bottom.
Jalousie windows, louvered windows:
A window with overlapping narrow glass, metal, or wooden louvers, operated with a crank handle for adjusting the louver angles.
Jamb:
Vertical members at the side of the window frame.
Lancet window:
Tall, narrow window with a pointed-arch top
Light, lite:
A pane of glass within a window.
Oriel window:
A window projecting from the wall and carried on brackets, corbels, or a cantilever. Unlike a bay window, the projection of an oriel does not extend all the way to the ground.
Panel window:
A form of picture window consisting of several sash or fixed glazings, separated by crossbars or mullions--or both.
Picture window:
Large fixed window.
Projected window:
Awning type window that swings either inwards or outwards at the top or the bottom.
Queen Anne window:
A window with small glass windows or lights arranged in various forms, usually only on the upper sash.
Sash (also window sash):
Framework of stiles and rails in which the lights of a window are set.
Sash and frame:
A window and its cased framing.
Side light (also Margin light):
A fixed often narrow glass window next to a door opening or window opening.
Single-hung window:
Window similar to double-hung window, except the top sash is stationary.
Solid frame:
Window frame made from a single piece of lumber.
Splayed window:
Window unit set at an angle in a wall.
Stacked windows:
Combined grouping of awning, hopper, casement, or non-operative windows to form a large glazed unit.
Tempered glass:
Special heat-treated, high-strength safety glass which shatters into pebble-sized particles and not in slivers.
Top hung-in window:
An awning window pivoted at the top and with the bottom swinging-in.
Transom (also transom bar):
Horizontal member separating a door from a window panel above the door, or separating one window above another.
Transom light:
Window sash located above a door.
Vertical sliding window:
One or more sash that move in a vertical direction.

 

For a complete glossary, visit the Window and Door Manufacturer’s Association

 

 

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