Definition

Noun: 1. The top, typically sloping, course of a brick or stone wall: A "coping" is the protective, often angled, layer of masonry (like brick or stone) that forms the topmost part of a wall, parapet, or chimney. Its primary function is to shed water away from the structure below, preventing damage from rain and moisture.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:
  • The old garden wall was finished with a beautiful stone coping.
  • The mason carefully laid the final row of bricks to form the coping.
  • Water runs off the slanted coping instead of soaking into the wall.

Advanced Usage

• "Coping stone": A specific stone used to form the coping. This term is often used interchangeably with "coping."
  • They replaced the damaged coping stones along the parapet.

Variants and Related Words

• Cope (verb): In architecture, this is the action of fitting or forming a coping on a wall.
  • The wall was coped with limestone slabs.
• Capstone (noun): A general term for a stone that forms the top of a wall or structure; it can be synonymous with a coping stone but is also used more broadly.

Synonyms

• Cap: A general term for a top covering or layer.
• Header course: In bricklaying, a course of bricks laid with their ends facing outwards, often used to form a coping.

Notes on Meaning

The word "coping" in this architectural context is distinct from the more common verb "to cope" (meaning to deal effectively with something difficult). They are homographs (spelled the same) but have different etymological origins and meanings. This entry defines only the architectural noun.

Noun

1. brick that is laid sideways at the top of a wall