barrel vault

noun

A simple roof having a curved, often semicircular cross section; used to span large distances in railway stations, churches, etc. Usually supported on columns.

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Meanings

nounbarrel vault (plural barrel vaults)

plural barrel vaults

  1. architectureA simple roof having a curved, often semicircular cross section; used to span large distances in railway stations, churches, etc. Usually supported on columns.
  2. businessA building profile featuring a rounded profile to the roof on the short axis, but with no angle change on a cut along the long axis.

Translations

Catalan volta de canó
  • volta de canóarchitecture
Dutch tongewelf
  • tongewelfarchitecture
Finnish tynnyriholvi
  • tynnyriholviarchitecture
German Tonnengewölbe
  • Tonnengewölbearchitecture
Hungarian dongaboltozat
  • dongaboltozatarchitecture
Italian volta a botte
  • volta a bottearchitecture
Norwegian tønnehvelv
  • tønnehvelvarchitecture
Spanish bóveda de cañón
  • bóveda de cañónarchitecture
Swedish tunnvalv
  • tunnvalvarchitecture
Cite this entry
APA

barrel vault. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/barrel%20vault

MLA

“barrel vault.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/barrel%20vault. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “barrel vault,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/barrel%20vault.

Source: barrel vault on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.