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Civil Engineering & Construction vocabulary · Structures and Loads

Column

Meaning in civil engineering & construction, with examples

/ˈkɑːləm/nounCore term

In civil engineering & construction, column means: A vertical structural member that collects loads from the beams and slabs above and carries them down to the foundations.

In Turkish: kolon, sütun

How it is used

A core word on every building project. Columns are positioned on a grid (for example column C4 on grid line C), cast or erected, and checked for size, verticality and reinforcement. A column schedule lists the size and bars of each one.

Example sentences

  1. Can you check the starter bars for column B3 before the concrete arrives?

  2. The architect wants slimmer columns in the lobby, but they have to carry six floors.

Common collocations

  • column grid
  • steel column
  • column base
  • column schedule
  • starter bars
  • beamA horizontal structural member that carries loads across an opening and passes them to the columns or walls at its ends. It works mainly in bending.
  • foundationThe lowest part of a structure, usually below ground, which spreads the building's loads safely into the soil or rock underneath.
  • loadA force that a structure has to carry, such as its own weight, people and furniture, wind, snow or an earthquake. Engineers usually express it in kilonewtons (kN).
  • reinforced concreteConcrete with steel bars or mesh cast inside it. The concrete resists compression and the steel resists tension, so together they make strong beams, slabs and columns.
  • rebarShort for reinforcing bar: a steel bar with ribs on its surface, placed in concrete to resist tension and hold the concrete together.

This word in other fields

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

More terms: Structures and Loads

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