dormant window

dormer, dormer window

A structure projecting above a sloping roof, usually housing a vertical window. It is not part of the roof structure but is framed separately, and often provides daylight and ventilation for a room located in a garret or loft space. For definitions and illustrations of specific types, see arched dormer, deck dormer, eyebrow dormer, flat-head dormer, gable dormer, hipped dormer, inset dormer, mission dormer, oval dormer, Palladian dormer, pedimented dormer, pitched-roof dormer, pointed dormer, polygonal dormer, recessed dormer, ridge dormer, round dormer, segmental dormer, shed dormer, through-the-cornice dormer, triangular dormer, wall dormer, watershed dormer.

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Architecture and Construction. Copyright © 2003 by McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.