what makes a terrace a terrace, anyway?
It occurred to me that my own definitions for these words depend heavily on three things: (1) what it's made of, (2) whether it's at ground level or not, and (3) whether it has a roof (or the floor of another level) overtop, or it's open to see the sky. Based on these, I think my personal definitions are:
Terrace: concrete or stone, no roof, at any height
Balcony: concrete or stone, "roof" consisting of the balcony above, higher than ground level, can be recessed or "sticking out" of the building
Patio: concrete or stone, at or very near (less than a metre or so) ground level, no roof
Deck: Wood, at or very near ground level, no roof
Verandah: ground level, made of wood, the roof is an extension of the house's roof.
I still don't have a word for helen's walkway/catwalk. Furthermore, what is that same thing called when it's on the inside of, say, a mall? We must've all seen two-story malls where the middle section is open, sometimes there are fountains, and you can lean over the railing and look at the shoppers below, and you make your way around on the second floor on a very wide version of helen's catwalk.
