lintel

/ˈlɪntl/

Other forms: lintels

In architecture, a lintel is the beam or other support at the top of a door or window. Most lintels are decorative as well as providing structural support.

A lintel can be purely ornamental, just an attractive horizontal flourish at the top of a door, or it can be a wood or metal support piece that also looks nice. Your fireplace might be topped by a stone lintel, and you might see a much older lintel in ancient Roman ruins, at the top of two massive pillars. In Old French, lintel means "threshold," from the Latin word limitaris, "bordering."

Definitions of lintel

1. noun

   horizontal beam used as a finishing piece over a door or window
   synonyms: header

   type of:

   beam

   long thick piece of wood or metal or concrete, etc., used in construction