Scantling, measurement of prescribed size, dimensions, particularly used of timber and stone and also of vessels.

In regard to timber the scantling is the thickness and breadth, the sectional dimensions; in the case of stone the dimensions of thickness, breadth and length; in shipbuilding the collective dimensions of the various parts.

The word is a variation of scantillon , a carpenter's or mason's measuring tool, also used of the measurements taken by it, and of a piece of timber of small size cut as a sample. The O. Fr. escantillon, mod. chantillon, is usually taken to be related to Ital. scandaglio, sounding-line (Lat. scandere, to climb; cf. scansio, the metrical scansion). It was probably influenced by cantel, cantle, a small piece, a corner piece.

The English form scantling was no doubt partly due to a confusion with scant, stinted, of short I measure; this is for scamt, cf. skimpy, scamp, and is related to O. N. skammr, short, brief.