sill plate

In by Jackie Dunn

The framing member anchored to the foundation wall upon which studs and other framing members are attached; the bottom plate of exterior walls.

sill plate (Wikipedia)
Unusual sill framing in a granary of half-timber construction. Long tenons project through the sill plate. Timber sills can span gaps in a foundation.

A sill plate or sole plate in construction and architecture is the bottom horizontal member of a wall or building to which vertical members are attached. The word plate is typically omitted in America and carpenters speak simply of the "sill". Other names are ground plate, ground sill, groundsel, and midnight sill. Sill plates are usually composed of lumber but can be any material. The timber at the top of a wall is often called a top plate, pole plate, wall plate or simply "the plate".

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