I-beam

noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A beam with cross-section shaped like a capital letter I (with serifs top and bottom), used in construction.
  2. 2
    girder having a cross section resembling the letter ‘I’ wordnet
  3. 3
    A cursor shaped like the letter I, usually indicating text that can be edited or selected.

    "In general, the cursor image is the primary concern, with different types used to indicate selected functions such as I-beams or vertical bars for text editing, a pencil for drawing, or a hand with the index finger extended […]"

Synonyms

All synonyms
h-beam

Example

More examples

"The architect specified a steel I-beam to act as the lintel to support the brickwork over the large window opening."

Etymology

Since it resembles a capital letter I with serifs.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.