birdsmouth
Syllables: birds·mouth/ˈbɜːdsmaʊθ/US/ˈbɝdsmaʊθ/
birdsmouth noun: a notch cut into the underside of a rafter to ensure that it does not move when resting on the wall plate running across the top of a wall; a similar notch in other timber components.
Noun
birdsmouth (plural birdsmouths)
- A notch cut into the underside of a rafter to ensure that it does not move when resting on the wall plate running across the top of a wall; a similar notch in other timber components.
- Support the veneer stack on a ¾-in.-thick board with a narrow V notch cut into one edge. This board is called a birds-mouth, and the V notch provides clearance for the blade while the work is supported for cutting.1994 July, Rosario Capotosto, “Inlay: How to Add Understated Elegance to any Woodworking Project”, in Popular Mechanics, page 68
- After the wall and ceiling framing has been completed the erection of the roof takes place. Nail the four straight rafters selected as the first and last into position at the birdsmouth.1995, Charles Simpson with Barry Hodgson, Building a House: Framing Practices, South Melbourne: Macmillan Education Australia, →ISBN, page 160
Verb
birdsmouth (third-person singular simple present birdsmouths, present participle birdsmouthing, simple past and past participle birdsmouthed)
- To cut a birdsmouth into a rafter or similar timber component.
- The end of the common rafter is birdsmouthed and nailed to the pole plate.1895, Edward J. Burrell, Elementary Building Construction and Drawing, page 122
Examples of birdsmouth in a sentence
- One of the most common is the use of “birdsmouths” cut into the rafter.2013, Rob Roy, “Basic Timber Frame Structure”, in Timber Framing for the Rest of Us: A Guide to Contemporary Post and Beam Construction...
- A birdsmouth is a notch cut into the underside of a roof rafter to enable it to sit tightly and securely on the timber wallplate that runs across the top of a wall.2014 November 8, Jeff Howell, “The value of keeping the pressure up”, in The Daily Telegraph, London, archived from the original on 07 May...
Forms of birdsmouth
| Noun | |
|---|---|
| plural | birdsmouths |
| alternative form | bird's mouth |
| alternative form | birdmouth |
| Verb | |
| third-person singular present | birdsmouths |
| present participle | birdsmouthing |
| past participle | birdsmouthed |
| past | birdsmouthed |
Origin of birdsmouth
From bird + -s- + mouth, from its appearance.
Questions about birdsmouth
- What does birdsmouth mean?
- Birdsmouth means a notch cut into the underside of a rafter to ensure that it does not move when resting on the wall plate running across the top of a wall; a similar notch in other timber components.
- How do you use birdsmouth in a sentence?
- One of the most common is the use of “birdsmouths” cut into the rafter.
- What part of speech is birdsmouth?
- Birdsmouth can be a noun or a verb.
- How do you pronounce birdsmouth?
- Birdsmouth is pronounced /ˈbɜːdsmaʊθ/ (UK).
- What is the plural of birdsmouth?
- The plural of birdsmouth is birdsmouths.
Words near birdsmouth in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: birdsmouth (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-birdsmouth.wav.
Cite this entry: “birdsmouth.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/birdsmouth. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.