The term stained glass can refer to the material of colored glass or the craft of working with it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term "stained glass" was applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches, cathedrals, chapels, and other significant buildings. Although traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensional structures and sculpture.

Modern vernacular usage has often extended the term "stained glass" to include domestic leadlight and objets d'art created from lead came and copper foil glasswork such as exemplified in the famous windows and lamps of Louis Comfort Tiffany.

Magnolia window by Louis Comfort Tiffany - 1901