Jamb
/dʒæm/noun
Either of the vertical sides of a doorway, window, or fireplace opening.
Did you know?In medieval Latin, the word behind *jamb* could mean a leg or shank, so architecture borrowed the body to name the frame that holds the opening upright.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*gʰembʰ-
“to bend, go crooked”
Late Latin
Latin
gamba
“leg, shank”
Old French
Old French
jambe
“leg”
Middle English
English
jambe
“leg; side post of a doorway”
Modern English
English
jamb
“the vertical side post of a door, window, or fireplace opening”