infrastructure

[in-fruh-struhk-cher]

noun

1. the fundamental facilities and systems serving a country, city, or area, as transportation and communication systems, power plants, and schools.

   Investments in infrastructure helped the U.S. economy recover from the Great Depression.

2. the basic, underlying framework or features of a system or organization.

   Over the years, as the incidence of cancer increased, the infrastructure of the hospital was developed to accommodate the new cases.

   Synonyms: support, foundation, basis

3. the military installations of a country.

   We could do much with just a fraction of the billions spent to maintain our robust overseas infrastructure.

infrastructure

/ ˈɪnfrəˌstrʌktʃə /

noun

1. the basic structure of an organization, system, etc

2. the stock of fixed capital equipment in a country, including factories, roads, schools, etc, considered as a determinant of economic growth

Other Word Forms

• infrastructural adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of infrastructure¹

First recorded in 1925–30; infra + structure

Example Sentences

In coastal communities around the country, the refrain is the same: private charity can’t replace public infrastructure.

Read more on Salon

Researchers at UCLA’s Luskin Center for Innovation, working with DWP, held a workshop in June with more than 100 engineers, public officials and scientists to discuss ways of improving water and power infrastructure.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

In a post on X following the attack, Zelensky wrote that the "cynical and calculated attack" targeted civilian and energy infrastructure.

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Unfortunately, the giant garter snake is becoming a casualty of California’s brutal cycle of droughts and habitat destruction — as much of the Central Valley converts to agriculture or infrastructure development, according to the U.S.

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Rare-earth deposits are available outside China, but matching China’s mining and processing infrastructure will take years.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• base 
• framework