| Ambulant | Able to walk, with aides if necessary. |
| Automatic door closer | A fitted spring or hydraulic device that closes the door. |
| Automation systems | Devices that automatically control systems such as temperature, lighting and water heating within a house. |
| Barrier | A wall or balustrade to prevent falling. Any impediment to access or movement. |
| Broomed concrete | A concrete surface textured by drawing a broom across it while still wet. |
| Call system | Equipment, usually electronic, that allows the user to make contact with other people. |
| Cavity slider | A door that slides into the thickness of a wall. |
| Chamfer | To cut a corner at 45 degrees. |
| Circulation space | Rooms such as corridors, passageways and hallways that provide routes to other rooms. Space inside a room that allows access to other parts of a room. |
| Coved | Sheet flooring carried up the wall in a curve to form a skirting. |
| Crossfall | Slight gradient across a footpath to drain off surface water. |
| Cutting and filling | The method of providing a flat area of land by cutting into the slope at the upper end and using excavated material to fill at the lower end. |
| Damp-proof course | A waterproof membrane used as a protection against damp. |
| Direct stick | A method of gluing a carpet directly to the floor. |
| Double glazing | Glazing units consisting of two or more layers of glass with air space between. |
| Drop-off | The edge of a deck, footpath or ramp from which someone could fall if no barrier was provided. |
| Ducted air | A system of heat delivery which conveys air from a central plant to air outlet grills. |
| Extract-hood or range-hood | A canopy over a cooker which draws in warm, humid air and removes it from the area. |
| Fibre cement | A sheet cladding material formed from cement reinforced with wood fibre. |
| Fish-eye lens or door viewer | A small device inserted in a door which allows users inside to see who is outside without being seen themselves. |
| Fixtures | Items of furniture or equipment which are fixed in place with screws or other fixing devices. |
| Gradient | The rate of change in level of a ramp expressed as a ratio of height per length. |
| Hinge-fixed pin | A hinge from which the pin cannot be removed. |
| Hinge-loose pin | A hinge from which the pin can be taken out to allow removal of the door. |
| Hinge-offset (cranked) | A hinge which allows the door to open further than a normal hinge. |
| In-floor heating | Electric elements or pipes filled with hot water embedded in a concrete floor to heat the slab. |
| Induction hob | A cooking top that heats only a purpose-made magnetic pan. |
| Intercom | A system of speakers and microphones allowing people in different rooms to talk to each other. |
| Jamb | The vertical side part of a door or a window frame. |
| Knee space | The space left vacant for knees under a table or bench. |
| Nosing | The rounded front edge of a stair tread. |
| Powder coating | A heat-set paint system. |
| Proprietary shroud | A purpose-made cover for hand-basin waste pipes. |
| Range | A cooker with cook top and oven on one unit. |
| Retaining wall | A wall which supports the earth between two levels. |
| Riser | The vertical part of a stair between the treads. |
| Solar heat gain | Heat gained from the natural warmth of the sun. |
| Split-level design | A house with rooms at level less than the height of one storey apart. |
| Suspended timber floor | A floor constructed in timber supported on a system of stumps and joists. |
| Tactile | Relating to the sense of touch. |
| Tempering valve | A valve on a hot water system that controls the water temperature. |
| Toe space | A recess to allow a person to stand close to a bench. The space needed to allow the feet of a person in a wheelchair to fit under a bench. |
| Turning space | Room to manoeuvre a wheelchair or a vehicle through 360 degrees. |
| Weephole | The hole in a course of bricks to allow for drainage. |
| Welded joint | A system of heat joining sheet flooring to make a waterproof joint. |
