curtain wall

American  

noun

1. (in a framed building) an exterior wall having no structural function.

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curtain wall British  

noun

1. a non-load-bearing external wall attached to a framed structure, often one that is prefabricated

2. a low wall outside the outer wall of a castle, serving as a first line of defence

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Etymology

Origin of curtain wall

First recorded in 1850–55

Example Sentences

“The building, 728 feet long, 282 feet wide, six stories high, presents an impassive façade to the world with its rather bland curtain wall of glass and aluminum.”

From Seattle Times • Jul. 11, 2023

That facade has since been replaced by a glass curtain wall, which admits daylight into the previously dim building and serves as a point of visual and physical connection to the Geffen Theater orb.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 20, 2021

Bronze was novel — the idea that you would use bronze as opposed to aluminum or steel to make the mullions for the curtain wall.

From New York Times • Apr. 29, 2020

Its shimmering glass curtain wall, a feature that later became essential to Bauhaus design, brought together everything Gropius loved.

From The New Yorker • Apr. 22, 2019

Soot stains marked some of the arrow loops, and here and there a crack or a missing merlon could be seen in the curtain wall, but it seemed little enough from this distance.

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin