Slight (Plywood Term) - Visible on observation, but does not interfere with the overall aesthetic appearance with consideration of the applicable grade of the panel

Slip Matched - Veneer sheets jointed side-by-side to convey a sense of repeating flitch figure. Most common in quarter-sliced and rift veneers.

Softwood - The non-porous wood of and cone-bearing, needle-leaved tree, regardless of whether the wood is in fact hard or soft...pine, fir, hemlock, etc.

Solid Core (Plywood Term) - Plywood panels in which all inner plies are grade J or better. Splits up to 1/8 inch are allowed.

Sound Cutting - A cutting free from rot, pith, shake and wane. It will admit sound knots, bird pecks. stain streaks or pin, shot and spot worm holes.

Sound Knot - A knot which is solid across its face, as hard as the surrounding wood and shows no indication of decay.

Specific Gravity - The ratio of the weight of a body o the weight of an equal volume of water; relative density.

Splits - Separations of wood fiber running parallel to the grain.

SPP - Species (plural).

Square Foot - An area 12" x 12", or the equivalent of 144 square inches without regard to thickness.

Stain - Discoloration in lumber caused by decay, fungi, etc. Normally avoidable through proper handling in the cutting and drying stages. Also, a finishing substance for coloring wood.

Steamed - This term refers to a special process in which the green lumber (usually Walnut or Cherry) is steamed in vats for the purpose of darkening sapwood to blend with heartwood color.

Stripe, Ribbon - A grain pattern often seen in tropical hardwoods caused by the spiral growth formation in the tree trunk. Quarter-sawn.

Surface Check - The separation of the wood fibers, producing small, shallow, length-wise separation of wood along the board's surface.

Surface Measure (SM) - Measuring method used for hardwood grade inspection. Same as square footage, expressed as a whole number. Fractions of measurement over and under a half foot are expressed as whole number respectively....i.e., a Surface Measure of 6.75 feet is rounded up to 7' Surface Measure. Surface measure is always a whole number.

Tally - A record of the number of pieces and footage by grade.

Tight Side - In knife-cut-veneer, that side of the sheet that was farthest from the knife as the sheet was being cut and containing no cutting checks (lathe checks).

edge of the next board.

Tongue and Grooved & End-Matched (T&G&EM) - Tongue and grooved on both sides and at both ends of piece, as in Oak flooring.

Torn Grain - A defect in which fibers below the dressed surface are torn by the planer.

Toughness - The property that allows wood to bend without breaking (see Plasticity).

Twist - Spiral warpage of a board. The board is no longer flat.

Veneer - A thin sheet of wood, rotary cut, sliced, or sawn from a log or flitch from a thickness of 1/100" up to 1/4".

Vertical Grain (VG) - The grain on quarter-sawn boards in softwood lumber.

V-Grooved - Narrow and shallow V or U shaped channels machined on the plywood face surface to achieve a decorative effect. V-grooving is most commonly encountered in mis-matched or random matched wall panels as the grooves fall on the edge joints of the pieces of veneer making the face appear as planking.

Vine Mark - Bands of irregular grain running across or diagonally to the grain which are caused by the growth of climbing vines around the tree.

Wane - The presence of bark, or the lack of wood from and causes.

Wainscot - Short length (3' high) wall paneling.

Warp - A generic term that includes all variations from a true plane surface....i.e., bow, sidebend, cup and twist.

W.H.A.D. - Worm holes a defect.

W.H.N.D. - Worm holes no defect.

Wood Filler (Plywood Term) - An aggregate of resin and strands, shreds, for flour of wood which is used to fill openings in wood and provide a smooth, durable surface.

Wooly Grain (Woolliness, Fuzzy Grain) - Wood surfaces having wood fibers frayed loose, rather than severed cleanly, at the surface; commonly encountered in machining tension wood.

Worm Holes - Voids in the wood caused by the burrowing action of certain wood-infesting worms, which do not survive the kiln-drying process.

Worm Tracks - Marks caused by various types of wood attacking larvae. Often appear as sound discolorations running with or across the grain in straight to wavy streaks. Sometimes referred to as "pith flecks" in certain species of maple, birch and other hardwoods because of a resemblance to the color of pith

Xylem - The sapwood that carries sap from the roots to the leaves.