- present participle of build.
building
Americannoun
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a relatively permanent enclosed construction over a plot of land, having a roof and usually windows and often more than one level, used for any of a wide variety of activities, as living, entertaining, or manufacturing.
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anything built or constructed.
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the act, business, or practice of constructing houses, office buildings, etc.
noun
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something built with a roof and walls, such as a house or factory
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the act, business, occupation, or art of building houses, boats, etc
Synonym Usage
Building, edifice, structure refer to something built. Building and structure may apply to either a finished or an unfinished product of construction, and carry no implications as to size or condition. Edifice is a more formal word and narrower in application, referring to a completed structure, and usually a large and imposing one. Building generally connotes a useful purpose (houses, schools, business offices, etc.); structure suggests the planning and constructive process.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of building
First recorded in 1250–1300, building is from the Middle English word byldinge. See build, -ing 1
Explanation
Building is the process of making something. Building Lego cities and towns is the favorite activity of many kids. When a construction company is building a structure like a grocery store or a school, you can say it's building a building. Anything from a small house to a skyscraper can be called a building, and both meanings of the word come from the verb build, with its Old English root byldan, "build or construct a house."
Vocabulary lists containing building
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Increasing social and political backlash to data-center development could be leading Big Tech companies “to start building sooner to emphasize job creation,” Nowak noted.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 13, 2026
The building previously housed part of the Debenhams department store, which closed in May 2021 following another fire the previous month.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
The researchers emphasize that the study does not provide a blueprint for building better artificial intelligence.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 13, 2026
The city had about $20 million set aside for the park, but the costs for actually building it were higher, officials said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
I’ve been at Ross Academy for over a year now, and the school building still blows me away.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
They worry about how much water these buildings use and fume at the amount of electricity they consume.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
During the tournament, thousands of Palestinians gathered in makeshift cafes set up inside tents or built from corrugated metal salvaged from damaged buildings to watch Egypt's matches.
From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026
Videos of children and families gathering around giant screens among destroyed buildings spread widely online, offering rare scenes of celebration amid the conflict.
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
In 2021, Fresno High School changed its mascot from a warrior to an image of one of its main buildings, Royce Hall, featuring an owl and an international baccalaureate symbol.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026
Regan waited for me to land beside her before taking off back toward the campus buildings.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
