The words we use when we talk & write about architecture describe more than just bricks & mortar ? they direct the ways we think of & live with buildings This book represents a thorough examination of the complex relationship between architecture & language as intricate social practices Words & Buildings is a study that will change & enrich the way we think & talk about architecture It is essential reading for anyone concerned with architecture & culture in the modern era Chapters investigate the language of modernism language & drawing ?masculine & feminine? architecture language metaphors science in architecture & the social properties of architecture A vocabulary of key words such as ? Character? ? Form? ? History? & space? locates each words modern meaning within a historical & theoretical framework & sets out its development & relevance for architects historians philosophers critics & the users of buildings themselves