Clapboard, also called bevel siding, lap siding, and weatherboard, with regional variation in the definition of those terms, is wooden siding of a building in the form of horizontal boards, often overlapping.
Oak clapboards lean-to attic Ephraim Hawley House
Clapboard siding stained dark brown
Captain William Smith House at Minute Man National Historical Park, a restored saltbox style house with unpainted clapboard siding
Contemporary use of clapboard/weatherboard and corrugated galvanised iron in Australia
Siding or wall cladding is the protective material attached to the exterior side of a wall of a house or other building. Along with the roof, it forms the first line of defense against the elements, most importantly sun, rain/snow, heat and cold, thus creating a stable, more comfortable environment on the interior side. The siding material and style also can enhance or detract from the building's beauty. There is a wide and expanding variety of materials to side with, both natural and artificial, each with its own benefits and drawbacks. Masonry walls as such do not require siding, but any wall can be sided. Walls that are internally framed, whether with wood, or steel I-beams, however, must always be sided.
Highly decorative wood-shingle siding on a house in Clatskanie, Oregon, U.S.
Slate wall shingles with a decorative pattern
Vinyl siding
Deteriorated imitation brick asphalt siding