Whether you’re new to green building or already an expert, you may sometimes find yourself asking, “What exactly does that mean?” when it comes to technical language in the LEED rating system. Words you use in everyday conversation may appear in places where the context of LEED certification gives them a different meaning.

Access our digital LEED certification glossary to view definitions of terms that are applicable to LEED v4: Building Design and Construction (except Homes and Multifamily Midrise), Interior Design and Construction, and Operations and Maintenance.

Find the technical definition of terms like “adjacent site,” demand response event” and integral labeling.” You can browse words via continuous scroll, or look up a particular term using the alphabet strip at the page footer.

Example glossary terms

Demand response (DR) event:

A specific period of time when the utility or independent service operator calls for a change in the pattern or level of use in grid-based electricity from its program participants. Also known as a “curtailment event.”

Infill site:

A site where at least 75% of the land area, exclusive of rights-of-way, within one-half mile (800 meters) of the project boundary is previously developed. A street or other right-of-way does not constitute previously developed land; it is the status of property on the other side of right-of-way or the street that matters.

Occupied space:

Enclosed space intended for human activities, excluding those spaces that are intended primarily for other purposes, such as storage rooms and equipment rooms, and that are only occupied occasionally and for short periods of time.