Can You Ace This Carpentry Quiz?

Framing is a key part of the building process. It's also a term that has been borrowed by many other fields -- filmmaking, for example, in which screenwriters use "framing devices" to set up a story.

Grain direction has to do with wood cells, and the way the wood grew when it was still a living tree. Experienced woodworkers know when it is best to work with or against the grain.

Crown molding was a big deal during the home-improvement and house-flipping crazes of the 2000s. You couldn't go to a dinner party without hearing someone talking about the difficult decision they were making about crown molding in the house they were redoing.

A load-bearing wall might support the roof, or the upper stories of a building. It is important to know which walls are load-bearing when considering knocking some down to create an open floor plan.

Don't be confused: While "pitch" can refer to a gluey substance that holds things together, that's not what this term is referring to. Here, it means the slant or steepness of the roof.

A flat-head screwdriver has a straight-line tip, for inserting in a straight-line slot on the screw head. A Phillips screwdriver has four notches, for inserting into a cross pattern on the screw head.

Outside construction, you most often hear this term used in describing crowd noise. A popular political candidate might be the recipient of cheers that "went up to the rafters."

Wood screws get their name from often being used to hold wooden elements together. They are NOT made of wood.

Joists run parallel to each other and support floors and ceilings. "Joist" also gets our vote for one of the funniest-sounding words in carpentry.

Even if you've only rented all your life, you're probably familiar with studs. Everyone who's ever wanted to hang a flat-screen TV or bicycle-mounting hooks has had to use a stud finder to do so.

The standard in residential construction is that studs are 16 inches apart. This means that, when hanging something on the wall, you only need to find one stud to determine the location of others.

It isn't just wood that can be beveled. You'll often see glass tables with beveled edges (which prevents injuries when someone runs into them).

Balusters are the vertical supports of the banister, a newel post is the heavy post at the top or bottom, and the landing is the flat place where the stairs end. But a gable is a shape of a roof, or a smaller strcuture in a roof, often making head space for an attic bedroom.

A plumb bob is simply a weight on a string, which uses gravity to indicate a straight vertical line. It's a cousin to the aforementioned spirit level.

A spirit level uses a bubble in a fluid-filled tube to indicate when a surface is level. The bubble should be centered in the tube.

This is a simple way of joining wood. A slightly oversimplified explanation is that this joint fits a square peg (sometimes called a "tongue") into a square hole.

Mortar is used in bricklaying, which is a field "adjacent" to carpentry, but not carpentry itself. Fun fact: British Prime Minister Winston Churchill enjoyed bricklaying, which he considered a relaxing pastime.

A transom is often a decorative glass window over a door. In years past, more of them opened, which is why old-fashioned detective stories have a PI listening through, or peeking over, a transom.

This differentiates them from interior doors. Interior doors are lighter in weight, and usually only need two hinges.

Joining is a kind of carpentry that involves connecting smaller pieces. It tends to be more decorative than overall carpentry.

After "journeyman" comes "master." Geeks of a certain age might known these terms best from Anne McCaffrey's "Dragonriders of Pern" novels, where they were used in the Harpers' Guild.

Don't confuse a modular home with a mobile home, though they can look alike. A modular home is built to different standards, and some of them can be quite stylish, in a minimalist way.

Flashing might run around chimneys, or between rain gutters and the rest of the roof. It's a fairly sexy name for such a basic, workhorse element of construction.

Carpentry is most associated with the making of buildings. But traditionally, carpenters also built carts, carriages and ships -- according to the gospels, Jesus was not just a carpenter, but specifically a builder of ships. Nowadays, with more construction involving metals and synthetic substances, carpenters are turning to specialty areas like fine furniture.

Kind of a poetic term, isn't it? Likewise, the highest point of a sloping roof is called a "ridge."

You'd most commonly find these under doors and windows. (We're also #sorrynotsorry about "differently-abled"-- a little political-correctness humor never killed anyone).

A-frame houses have simple, long-timbered roofs. They resemble Swiss chalets and are popular for part-time or vacation homes.

Shingles are sometimes used in siding, often unpainted, and only lightly stained. This kind of siding was popular in the 1970s.

"Stick-built" just means it was built with traditional methods, with every part framed on the site. Though we have to admit, "stick-built" sounds very primitive, like a forerunner to even a log cabin.

A multi-meter is very useful in general -- it tests batteries to see how much energy is left in them. But it doesn't have anything directly to do with woodwork.

"Skirting board" is so named because it skirts the edge of the room. Fun fact: It's one of the small things that was changed between editions of "Harry Potter" books in the UK and in the US.

Stringers are strong wooden supports for the individual steps of staircases. Not to be confused with the use of "stringer" as a freelance reporter for a news-wire service.

Some builders drop the "plate" and just refer to the "sill." Others might call it the "ground plate" (which sounds like it has to do with electrical wiring).

In balloon-frame construction, the studs are full height, running from roof to ceiling. This leaves empty space for flames to run straight up the insides of the walls.

You don't hear this term much anymore. But it survives in the phrase "beyond the pale." Today, this means that someone's behavior has crossed a line of acceptability. But back in the day, it meant they'd gone past a territorial fence of sharpened spikes.