architecture

American  

[ahr-ki-tek-cher] / ˈɑr kɪˌtɛk tʃər /

noun

1. the profession of designing buildings, open areas, communities, and other artificial constructions and environments, usually with some regard to aesthetic effect. Architecture often includes design or selection of furnishings and decorations, supervision of construction work, and the examination, restoration, or remodeling of existing buildings.

2. the character or style of building.

   the architecture of Paris; Romanesque architecture.

3. the action or process of building; construction.

4. the result or product of architectural work, as a building.

5. buildings collectively.

6. Computers.  a fundamental underlying design of computer hardware, software, or both.

7. the structure of anything.

   the architecture of a novel.

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architecture British  

/ ˈɑːkɪˌtɛktʃə /

noun

1. the art and science of designing and superintending the erection of buildings and similar structures

2. a style of building or structure

   Gothic architecture

3. buildings or structures collectively

4. the structure or design of anything

   the architecture of the universe

5. the internal organization of a computer's components with particular reference to the way in which data is transmitted

6. the arrangement of the various devices in a complete computer system or network

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Other Word Forms

• architectural adjective
• architecturally adverb

Etymology

Origin of architecture

First recorded in 1555–65; from Middle French, from Latin architectūra; architect, -ure

Example Sentences

"While puberty offers a clear start, the end of adolescence is much harder to pin down scientifically. Based purely on neural architecture, we found that adolescent-like changes in brain structure end around the early thirties."

From Science Daily

"The security network, comprising the conventional security agencies and the local security architecture are currently doing what they should do," he told the BBC.

From BBC

The company has shipped Dragon Hatchling architecture, but doesn’t plan to release the commercial models trained on it until next year.

From The Wall Street Journal

Most attention so far has focused on their unusual architecture, sure to draw crowds.

From Los Angeles Times

Budapest -- with its eclectic architecture and several modern studios -- has become Hollywood's most important production hub outside the English-speaking world, he noted.

From Barron's

Related Words

• building
• construction
• engineering
• planning