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Showing results for I-beam. Search instead for I beams.
Synonyms

I-beam

American  
[ahy-beem] / ˈaɪˌbim /

noun

  1. a rolled or extruded metal beam having a cross section resembling an I.

I-beam British  

noun

  1. a rolled steel joist or a girder with a cross section in the form of a capital letter I Compare H-beam

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of I-beam

First recorded in 1890–95

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Gamboa was placing an I-beam atop the plant’s paint building when he lost his balance and fell.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 12, 2025

Swain, 59, was a commercial electrician in Tampa when a collision with an I-beam on a construction site 10 years ago left him with severe neck and back injuries.

From Washington Post • Dec. 5, 2022

Sound Transit has built a variety of overpasses, such as hollow pre-formed segments over I-5 at Tukwila, a giant poured-in-place bridge over I-405 in Bellevue, and I-beam girders for half of the Northgate-Lynnwood project.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 19, 2020

She borrows methods and materials from the realm of architectural construction, casting concrete, positioning lengths of I-beam and stacking bricks.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 29, 2019

He appeared from behind an I-beam and raised his welding shield.

From "Educated" by Tara Westover

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.