structure

American  

[struhk-cher] / ˈstrʌk tʃər /

noun

• structures
  plural

1. mode of building, construction, or organization; arrangement of parts, elements, or constituents.

   a pyramidal structure.

   Synonyms:

   configuration, form, system

2. something built or constructed, as a building, bridge, or dam.

3. a complex system considered from the point of view of the whole rather than of any single part.

   the structure of modern science.

4. anything composed of parts arranged together in some way; an organization.

5. the relationship or organization of the component parts of a work of art or literature.

   the structure of a poem.

6. Biology. mode of organization; construction and arrangement of tissues, parts, or organs.

7. Geology.

   1. the attitude of a bed or stratum or of beds or strata of sedimentary rocks, as indicated by the dip and strike.

   2. the coarser composition of a rock, as contrasted with its texture.

8. Chemistry. the manner in which atoms in a molecule are joined to each other, especially in organic chemistry where molecular arrangement is represented by a diagram or model.

9. Sociology. social structure.

10. the pattern of organization of a language as a whole or of arrangements of linguistic units, as phonemes, morphemes or tagmemes, within larger units.

---

verb (used with object)

• structures,
  present (3rd person singular)
• structured,
  past participle,  past
• structuring
  present participle

1. to give a structure, organization, or arrangement to; construct or build a systematic framework for.

   to structure a curriculum so well that a novice teacher can use it.

structure British  

/ ˈstrʌktʃə /

noun

1. a complex construction or entity

2. the arrangement and interrelationship of parts in a construction, such as a building

3. the manner of construction or organization

   the structure of society

4. biology morphology; form

5. chem the arrangement of atoms in a molecule of a chemical compound

   the structure of benzene

6. geology the way in which a mineral, rock, rock mass or stratum, etc, is made up of its component parts

7. rare the act of constructing

---

verb

1. (tr) to impart a structure to

Synonym Usage

See building.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• interstructure
  noun
• nonstructure
  noun
• destructure
  verb (used with object)
• prestructure
  verb (used with object)

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• structures
  plural

Participles

• structuring
  present
• structured
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• structure
  simple
• structures
  simple
• have structured
  perfect
• has structured
  perfect
• am structuring
  progressive
• are structuring
  progressive
• is structuring
  progressive
• have been structuring
  perfect progressive
• has been structuring
  perfect progressive

Past

• structured
  simple
• had structured
  perfect
• was structuring
  progressive
• were structuring
  progressive
• had been structuring
  perfect progressive

Future

• will structure
  simple
• will have structured
  perfect
• will be structuring
  progressive
• will have been structuring
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of structure

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin structūra, equivalent to struct(us) (past participle of struere “to put together”) + -ūra noun suffix; see -ure

Explanation

A structure is something of many parts that is put together. A structure can be a skyscraper, an outhouse, your body, or a sentence. Structure is from the Latin word structura which means "a fitting together, building." Although it's certainly used to describe buildings, it can do more than that. A family's structure includes the relationship of its members, your body structure can refer to how your muscles and bones fit together. Sentence structure is how a sentence is put together, including subjects, verbs, and all that stuff English teachers love to yap about. Structure is usually a noun, but it can also be a verb meaning to impose order, like if you "structure an argument to convince your parents to let you stay out later."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

structure structures structured structuring

Zuckerberg says Meta is adopting a new governance structure that gives its board of directors power to say whether new models adhere to safety criteria the board approves.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

But under the surface, little bits of notes fall precisely in and out of place in a rhythmic structure almost too hard to count.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026

In Singapore, the banks I spoke with preferred consistent monthly income and saw my U.S. pay structure as less straightforward.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026

Holt said he did not realise he needed permission to redecorate the Grade II-listed structure.

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

He points across the dark grounds, and between the deep shadows of other hulking rollers, I see a human structure with its false suns gleaming.

From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz

He calls for other companies to adopt similar structures, and says there should be “an industrywide version of this process.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

“Significant damage to roads or structures is not expected.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026

Things have been especially grim on the 51st Street overpass, where tents, makeshift structures and huge mounds of trash lined the sidewalks.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026

For the first time, scientists were able to resolve extremely fine, fringe-like structures along the edges of these granules.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026

Then came the mechanism by which an organism determines where these structures are to be placed: front or back, left or right, above or below.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee

The problem comes if you go straight from wearing a very structured shoe to wearing flip-flops a lot, she explains.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

It offers a structured, repeatable method for developing empathy as a lived, practiced capacity.

From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2026

This made it possible to observe the underlying interaction between the structured light and the molecular shape more directly.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 28, 2026

Even though it remains to be seen how a hypothetical deal would be structured, Seaport Research’s Jay Goldberg was cautious about this sort of arrangement.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026

Though she still has a dissertation to write, still has an adviser to monitor her progress, she feels unmoored already, somehow beyond the world that has defined and structured and limited her for so long.

From "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri

Chesney also talked about the structuring of his practices, specifically with having some in the morning and afternoon to expose his players to the heat.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026

Prosecutors charged Thola-Duran with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, to receive and transport stolen property interstate, and to commit money laundering, and structuring transactions to avoid federal financial reporting requirements.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 23, 2026

He was asked by liana Bouzali, Morgan Stanley’s global head of derivatives, distribution and structuring, how he would construct a hedge-fund portfolio from scratch today.

From MarketWatch ● Feb. 28, 2026

The review also outlines fast-moving developments in multidimensional entanglement, ultrafast temporal structuring, advanced nonlinear detection techniques, and compact on-chip devices that can generate or process higher-dimensional quantum light than ever before.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 26, 2026

He runs his fingers through his hair, structuring it just so.

From "Love, Hate & Other Filters" by Samira Ahmed

Related Words

• architecture
• arrangement
• complex
• construction
• design
• format
• formation
• framework
• network
• organization
• system