refend
Page approvedn. m. · interior bearing wall (US) · cross wall (UK)
Definition
Mur porteur intérieur, perpendiculaire aux façades. Il reprend les planchers et permet de libérer les façades, qui n'ont alors plus à porter.
An interior load-bearing wall, perpendicular to the façades. It takes the floors and frees the façades, which then no longer have to carry load.
Diagram
Example sentences
Written (email, official document)
FRLes refends perpendiculaires aux façades reprennent les planchers, ce qui libère les façades.
ENThe refends (n. m.) running across the building take the floors, which frees the façades.
Spoken (standard)
FRNe touche pas à ce mur : c'est un refend, pas une cloison.
ENDon't touch that wall: it's a refend (n. m.), not a partition.
Spoken (informal)
FRIl voulait ouvrir le refend pour agrandir la cuisine ; l'ingénieur a failli s'évanouir.
ENHe wanted to open up the refend (n. m.) to enlarge the kitchen; the engineer nearly fainted.
Nuances and pitfalls
Refend (n. m.) or cloison? The refend carries the floors; the cloison (n. f.) only separates rooms and carries nothing. A refend is not opened without a structural study.
Free façades. When the refends carry the load, the façades are free (façades libres, the term Le Corbusier made famous): large openings can be made in them without touching the structure.
Related terms
voilecloisontrameValidation
- French term, register, FR sentences : ✓ validated
- US/UK equivalents and EN sentences : ✓ validated
- Diagram : ✓ validated
Reviewed by Raphaël B. · 8 Oct 2026
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