Revit terminology is the first barrier almost every newcomer meets. The software speaks English, the reference material speaks English, and the site speaks something else entirely.
This article gathers the vocabulary the Institute uses consistently into three tables, along with the pairs of terms most often mixed up. To learn modelling and documentation end to end, see the Revit Architecture course.
Why the interface stays in English
Revit has never shipped a localised Vietnamese interface, and that is unlikely to change. Every button, every dialog and every parameter name is in English.
So the rule used here is simple: keep the English name whenever you refer to a button or a field, and translate only the explanation. Translating the button names sounds friendlier, but the reader can then no longer trace anything back to the source material, nor find the button on screen.
Three foundation words do have settled local equivalents — Type, Instance and Parameter. Beyond those three, anything visible on screen keeps its English name.
Category, Family, Type and Instance
Grasp these four and most of the remaining vocabulary explains itself, because nearly everything in Revit hangs off one of them.
| Level | What it means |
|---|---|
| Category | The fixed grouping Revit defines and you cannot extend: Walls, Doors, Windows, Furniture. The category decides how an element displays, schedules and hides |
| Family | A set of components sharing one construction method and one parameter set. A single-leaf door and a double-leaf door are two families |
| Type | A variant within a family, differing in parameter values. An 800×2200 door and a 900×2200 door are two types |
| Instance | Each individual element placed in the model |
The question to ask before editing any parameter is: type or instance. Edit a type and every element of that type follows; edit an instance and only the selected one changes. Building and managing families is covered in what a Revit family is.
Revit terminology for modelling and components
This is the group met on the first day, while walls and floors are still going in.
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Analytical Model | the structural analysis model |
| Area | an area object with a boundary you draw yourself |
| Area Plan | a plan view for area objects |
| Assembly Code | the component classification code |
| Attach Top/Base | fix the top or base to another element |
| Baluster | an individual railing post |
| Base Constraint | the level the base is tied to |
| Base Offset | the offset from the base level |
| Basic Wall | a single-layer wall family |
| Beam | a structural beam |
| Blend | a solid joining two profiles |
| Boundary Line | the sketched boundary |
| Building Pad | the building pad, removed in the 2027 release |
| Category | the element category |
| Ceiling | a ceiling |
| Column | an architectural column |
| Component | a loadable component placed from the library |
| Contour | a terrain contour line |
| Core Boundary | the edge of the structural core layers |
| Curtain Grid | the dividing lines of a curtain wall |
| Curtain Panel | a panel of a curtain wall |
| Curtain Wall | a curtain wall |
| Cutoff Level | the level at which a roof is cut off |
| Desired Number of Risers | the target riser count for a stair |
| Disallow Join | prevent a wall end from joining |
| Door | a door |
| Excavate | cut terrain to the building footprint |
| Extrusion | a solid extruded from one profile |
| Family | a set of components sharing construction and parameters |
| Family Editor | the family authoring environment |
| Family Template | the template a new family starts from |
| Fascia | a roof fascia |
| Floor | a floor |
| Function | the role of a construction layer |
| Grid | a grid line |
| Gutter | a roof gutter |
| Handrail | a handrail |
| Head Height | the head height of an opening |
| Host | the element another element sits in or on |
| In-Place Mass | a mass built inside the project |
| Instance | one placed element |
| Landing | a stair landing |
| Layer | a construction layer |
| Level | a storey datum |
| Location Line | the reference line a wall is drawn along |
| Mark | a per-element reference number |
| Model Group | a group of model elements |
| Model Text | three-dimensional lettering |
| Mullion | a curtain wall mullion |
| Opening | an opening cut in a host |
| Parameter | a parameter |
| Pick New Host | reassign an element to a different host |
| Property Line | a site boundary line |
| Railing | a railing |
| Ramp | a ramp |
| Reference Plane | a reference plane |
| Reveal | a recessed groove in a wall |
| Revolve | a solid revolved about an axis |
| Riser | the vertical face of a step |
| Roof by Extrusion | a roof extruded from a profile |
| Roof by Footprint | a roof defined by its plan boundary |
| Room | a room bounded by real elements |
| Room Bounding | whether an element forms room boundaries |
| Room Separator | a line that divides rooms |
| Rough Width | the rough opening width |
| Run | a flight of stairs |
| Scope Box | a scope box |
| Shape Editing | editing the surface shape of a floor or roof |
| Sill Height | the sill height of a window |
| Sketch | the sketched boundary mode |
| Slope | the slope value |
| Slope Arrow | an arrow that defines a slope |
| Soffit | a roof soffit |
| Span Direction | the structural span direction |
| Stacked Wall | a wall stacked from several wall types |
| Stair | a stair |
| Structural Column | a load-bearing column |
| Structure (Edit Assembly) | the layer build-up dialog |
| Sweep | a solid swept along a path |
| Swept Blend | a sweep whose profile changes along the path |
| Toposolid | terrain modelled as a solid |
| Top Constraint | the level the top is tied to |
| Top Rail | the top rail of a railing |
| Tread | the horizontal face of a step |
| Type | a type |
| Type Catalog | a list of types shipped beside a family |
| Unconnected Height | a height not tied to a level |
| Void | a negative solid that carves geometry |
| Wall | a wall |
| Wall Join | the junction between walls |
| Window | a window |
| Wrapping | how layers wrap at wall ends and openings |
Further reading for this group: how to draw walls in Revit for Layer and Wall Join, columns in Revit for Column and Beam, curtain walls in Revit for Mullion and Curtain Grid, scope boxes in Revit for Scope Box and Reference Plane.
Autodesk describes reference planes on Reference Planes.
Revit view terminology: views, annotation and sheets
This is the group most online glossaries leave out, yet it decides whether the printed set is usable.
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Absolute Path | a fixed file path |
| Annotation Crop | the crop boundary for annotation |
| Attachment | a reference type that passes through |
| Audit | check and repair the file structure while opening |
| Callout | an enlarged detail view |
| Calculate totals | total a schedule column |
| Color Fill Legend | the legend for a colour scheme |
| Color Scheme | a colour fill scheme |
| Coordination Review | review changes in a linked model |
| Copy/Monitor | copy and monitor another team's elements |
| Crop Region | the crop boundary of a view |
| Cut Plane | the cutting plane of a plan view |
| Detail Component | a two-dimensional detail component |
| Detail Level | the level of detail drawn |
| Detail Line | a view-specific line |
| Dimension | a dimension |
| Discipline | the discipline of a view |
| Duplicate as Dependent | create a dependent copy of a view |
| Elevation | an elevation view |
| Export Setup | a saved export configuration |
| Fields | the columns chosen for a schedule |
| Filled Region | a filled two-dimensional region |
| Filter | a view filter |
| Formatting | schedule column formatting |
| Grand totals | the total row at the foot of a schedule |
| Guide Grid | an alignment grid on a sheet |
| Halftone | drawn in half tone |
| Hidden field | a schedule column kept but not shown |
| Highlight in Model | jump from a schedule row to the element |
| Import | pull content into the file |
| Insulation | the insulation batting symbol |
| Interference Check | clash detection |
| Itemize every instance | list every element separately |
| Keynote | an annotation driven by a code |
| Label | a field that reads data automatically |
| Layer Mapping | how categories map to layers on export |
| Leader | the pointer line of an annotation |
| Line Patterns | dash pattern definitions |
| Line Weights | the pen weight table |
| Link | a reference to an external file |
| Manage Links | the link management dialog |
| Masking Region | a region that hides what is behind it |
| Matchline | the line where a plan splits across sheets |
| Material Takeoff | a schedule of material quantities |
| Naming Rules | the rules for naming exported files |
| Nested Link | a link inside a linked file |
| Note Block | a schedule collecting annotation symbols |
| Object Styles | display settings per category |
| Overlay | a reference type that does not pass through |
| Project Parameter | a parameter added across a project |
| Purge Unused | remove unused objects |
| Reconcile Hosting | find components that lost their host |
| Relative Path | a path relative to the project file |
| Repeating Detail | a detail component repeated along a line |
| Review Warnings | the list of model warnings |
| Revision | a revision cycle |
| Revision Cloud | a cloud marking a revised area |
| Schedule | a schedule |
| Section | a section view |
| Select by ID | select an element by its identifier |
| Shared Parameter | a parameter shared across files |
| Sheet | a drawing sheet |
| Sheet List | the drawing register |
| Sorting/Grouping | schedule sorting and grouping |
| Spot Coordinate | a coordinate marker |
| Spot Elevation | a level marker |
| Spot Slope | a slope marker |
| Tag | a tag |
| Tag All Not Tagged | tag every untagged element at once |
| Text | a text note |
| Tick Mark | the symbol at a dimension witness line |
| Title Block | the drawing title block |
| Underlay | another level shown faintly beneath a view |
| View Depth | how far a plan view sees |
| View Range | the view range planes |
| View Template | a saved set of view settings |
| Viewport | a view placed on a sheet |
| Visibility/Graphics | visibility settings for one view |
| Witness Line | the extension line of a dimension |
Further reading: hiding and showing elements in Revit for View Range and Visibility/Graphics, tags in Revit for Tag and Keynote, schedules in Revit for Fields and Material Takeoff, title blocks in Revit for Title Block and Label.
Revit material terminology: materials and rendering
The third group turns up last, when an image has to go to the client.
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Altitude | the sun's altitude angle |
| Ambient Light | ambient lighting |
| Appearance | how a material looks when rendered |
| Azimuth | the sun's azimuth angle |
| Background | the rendered background |
| Camera | a camera |
| Cast Shadows | cast sun shadows |
| Consistent Colors | a flat colour display style |
| Cut Pattern | the hatch shown where a material is cut |
| Emissivity | how much light a surface emits |
| Exposure Value | the exposure of a rendered image |
| Eye Elevation | the height of the camera |
| Graphic Display Options | the view display settings dialog |
| Ground Plane at Level | take the ground plane from a level |
| Hidden Line | the hidden line display style |
| Highlights | the brightest areas of an image |
| Lighting Scheme | the lighting used when rendering |
| Location and Site | project location and site settings |
| Material Browser | the material management dialog |
| Orthographic | orthographic projection |
| Perspective | perspective projection |
| Realistic | the realistic display style |
| Reflectance | how much light a surface reflects |
| Relief Pattern (Bump) | surface relief |
| Render | render an image |
| Rendering Settings | the render settings |
| Roughness | surface roughness |
| Sample Size | the real size of a texture tile |
| Saturation | colour saturation |
| Section Box | a box that crops one 3D view |
| Shaded | the shaded display style |
| Silhouettes | heavier outline edges |
| Solar Study | a sun study |
| Sun Path | the sun path |
| Sun Settings | the sun settings |
| Surface Pattern | the hatch shown on a face |
| Target Elevation | the height of the camera target |
| Textures | how textures display in a view |
| Texture Editor | the texture editing dialog |
| Transparency | transparency |
| Use Render Appearance | take the shaded colour from the render material |
| Visual Style | the display style of a view |
| White Point | the colour temperature of a rendered image |
| Wireframe | the wireframe display style |
Further reading: perspective views in Revit for Camera and Eye Elevation, rendering in Revit for Material Browser and Texture Editor.
Pairs of terms that get confused
| Pair | The difference |
|---|---|
| Type and Instance | Edit a type and every copy follows; edit an instance and only that one changes |
| Room and Area | A room takes its boundary from real elements; an Area has a boundary you draw |
| Link and Import | A link keeps the file outside and updates; an import swallows the content |
| Overlay and Attachment | An overlay does not pass through to a third file; an attachment does |
| Scope Box and Section Box | One governs datums across views; the other crops one 3D view |
| Surface Pattern and Cut Pattern | The hatch on a face; the hatch where the material is cut |
Overlay against attachment causes the most trouble on multi-discipline jobs, because the consequence only shows up in a third file. The handling is covered in linking Revit models.
Type and instance: the pair that matters most
The Properties palette always has two halves: the fields on show are instance parameters, while Edit Type opens the type parameters. The two look alike, so beginners edit the wrong one.
The test is short. Anything identical across every element of that type belongs to the type: wall thickness, layer build-up, door leaf size. Anything different from one element to the next belongs to the instance: base level, unconnected height, mark number.
The consequence of getting it wrong is plain. Change a door width in the type parameters and every door of that type in the project changes with it. To make one different, duplicate the type rather than editing the shared one.
Learning the vocabulary by stage
Learning alphabetically fades quickly. Learning by stage sticks, because each stage uses its own set and uses it constantly.
The modelling group is the familiar one, since everyone starts there. The views and sheets group is where most self-taught users stall, usually just as the drawing set is due. The materials and coordination group only arrives on a real project.
The practical advice: finish the second group before taking on documentation work. Without it, a well-built model still will not produce a usable set of drawings.
Frequently asked questions
Should I install a Vietnamese build of Revit?
There is no official localised build. The unofficial translations circulating online break the trail back to the source material and usually carry licensing risk.
How do Category, Family and Type differ?
Category is the fixed grouping Revit defines. A category holds many families, each a distinct construction method. A family holds many types, differing in parameter values.
Why does editing one door change a whole run of them?
Because the parameter edited was a type parameter, not an instance parameter. To make one different, duplicate the type and edit the copy.
Overlay or attachment — which should I use?
Overlay is the safe choice and the default. Attachment passes the whole chain of links through, which quickly makes files heavy and duplicated.
How many terms should I memorise before starting?
None. Learn the four levels of Category, Family, Type and Instance, then look the rest up as the work demands.
Related articles
- What a Revit family is — the four levels and building component libraries
- The Revit user interface — what each part of the screen is called
- Revit keyboard shortcuts — the two-letter codes for common commands
- Scope boxes in Revit — scope boxes, work planes and reference planes