architects' scale

noun

: a scale of rule usually of triangular section made of boxwood and having a variety of graduations on its edges, one edge usually being graduated in inches and sixteenths of an inch, the other edges graduated in twelfths and fractions thereof for lengths of 3 inches, 1¹/₂ inches, and 1 inch so that dimensions of reduced-scale drawings may be measured directly in feet and inches

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