Architecture Terms – S

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window facing out to a brick apartment building with two plants sitting on the window sill
Photo by Hannah Busing, via Unsplash
Sill

The piece of the structure under a window or door opening.

Skylight facing a cloud in the blue sky with white ceiling
Photo by JT, via Unsplash
Skylight

A window in the ceiling.

La Rochelle 2018 Tour de la Lanterne
Photo by Sandro Alphonse, via Unsplash
Spire

The tapering pointed construction at the top of a building that’s typically a narrow octagonal pyramid sitting on top of a square tower.

steeple tower of a church building
Photo by Adam Kring, via Unsplash
Steeple

An ornamental structure or tower made up of a series of stories, each getting smaller until it’s topped by a small pyramid, spire or cupola (a small dome).

exterior of a home in a city with a red door and creme face with four steps that lead up to the door
Photo by Christian Koch, via Unsplash
Stoop

A short set of steps that leads up to the front door of a home or building.

Aerial view of the wooden structure of a home being built
Photo by Avel Chuklanov, via Unsplash
Structure

The structure of a building involves the parts that support the weight of the building itself. Think of it as the skeleton. The structure can be made up of different materials, but is be commonly found to be wood.