batten- a thin narrow strip of wood used to seal, reinforce or support a joint
bird’s mouth joint- a V-shaped joint that is often used to connect a rafter to a wall’s top plate
blind nailing- a nailing technique used for fastening tongue and groove boards; nails are set at an angle
cant strip- a strip placed in the angle between a roof and the joining wall
cats- horizontal timbers in a structure (used in between studs, connecting them)
cleats- a narrow board or strip used as a support
dado- a three-sided trench cut across the grain of a board
fascia- a horizontal piece covering the joint between the top of a wall and the overhanging eaves
ferro-cement- mortar or plaster applied over mesh and some sort of reinforcements (such as rebar)
gables- the angled wall that meets the end of a pitched roof
groove- a three-sided trench cut with the grain of a board
lap joint- an overlapping joint in which one piece of wood, the thicker of the two, has its thickness reduced to accept the full thickness of the other board
mortise- a recess cut into a piece to receive a tenon
muntin- a thin strip that separates panes of glass in a sash
pork chop- a triangular piece of scrap lumber
R-value- a measurement of an insulating material’s effectiveness; the higher the R-value, the more insulating a material is
rabbet- a two-sided trench cut on the edge of a board
rip-cut- a cut parallel to the grain of the board
shiplap- a wooden board with rabbets on opposites sides allowing the boards to overlap
soffit- the underside of a structure such as overhanging eaves
spline- a narrow strip of wood that is glued in corresponding grooves to join pieces of wood
stile- the vertical member of any frame, such as a door, window or face frame
stringers- a timber used to support cross members (in stairs, the stringer supports the treads)
studs- vertical timbers in a structure
tenon- the rabbeted edge that is inserted into a matching recess, called a mortise
timber-frame construction- a centuries-old building technique for joining heavy timbers with mortise and tenon joints secured by oak pegs called trunnels
toenail- the act of driving a nail at an angle through a board to attach it to another
tongue and groove- a method of joining boards, such as flooring, by inserting a thin ridge on one edge (tongue) into a thin slot on the other (groove)
treads- the cross members on stairs or ladders
trunnel- a wooden peg used to fasten timbers together