[W/K] :: Bowstring girder

  Girder \Gird"er\, n. [From Gird to encircle.]
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     1. One who, or that which, girds.
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     2. (Arch. & Engin.) A main beam; a stright, horizontal beam
        to span an opening or carry weight, such as ends of floor
        beams, etc.; hence, a framed or built-up member
        discharging the same office, technically called a compound
        girder. See Illusts. of Frame, and Doubleframed floor,
        under Double.
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     Bowstring girder, Box girder, etc. See under Bowstring,
        Box, etc.
  
     Girder bridge. See under Bridge.
  
     Lattice girder, a girder consisting of longitudinal bars
        united by diagonal crossing bars.
  
     Half-lattice girder, a girder consisting of horizontal
        upper and lower bars connected by a series of diagonal
        bars sloping alternately in opposite directions so as to
        divide the space between the bars into a series of
        triangles. --Knight.
  
     Sandwich girder, a girder consisting of two parallel wooden
        beams, between which is an iron plate, the whole clamped
        together by iron bolts.
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  Bowstring \Bow"string`\, n.
     1. The string of a bow.
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     2. A string used by the Turks for strangling offenders.
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     Bowstring bridge, a bridge formed of an arch of timber or
        iron, often braced, the thrust of which is resisted by a
        tie forming a chord of the arch.
  
     Bowstring girder, an arched beam strengthened by a tie
        connecting its two ends.
  
     Bowstring hemp (Bot.), the tenacious fiber of the
        Sanseviera Zeylanica, growing in India and Africa, from
        which bowstrings are made. --Balfour.
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