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Architecture vocabulary · Design Process

Precedent

Meaning in architecture, with examples

/ˈpresɪdənt/nounCommon term

In architecture, precedent means: An existing building or project that architects study to learn from its ideas, organisation or details and to support their own design decisions.

In Turkish: örnek proje, referans proje

How it is used

Common in schools: tutors ask students to research precedents or do a precedent study. In practice, architects show precedents to clients to explain an idea. The stress is on the first syllable: PRESS-i-dent.

Example sentences

  1. For the precedent study, compare three libraries with central reading rooms.

  2. We showed the client some precedents to explain what a courtyard house feels like.

Common collocations

  • precedent study
  • research precedents
  • architectural precedent
  • precedent analysis
  • conceptThe central idea that guides a design and gives it a clear direction, such as a strong relationship with the landscape or a building organised around light.
  • design studioThe central course in architecture education, where students develop design projects over a term with regular crits and juries; also a design office.
  • site analysisA study of a site before design starts, looking at its size, slope, climate, sun, wind, views, access, surrounding buildings and planning rules.
  • vernacular architectureTraditional buildings made by local people with local materials and knowledge, shaped by climate, culture and everyday needs rather than by professional architects.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Design Process

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