infrastructure

American  

[in-fruh-struhk-cher] / ˈɪn frəˌstrʌk tʃər /

noun

• infrastructures
  plural

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.

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infrastructure British  

/ 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

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• infrastructural
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• infrastructures
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of infrastructure

First recorded in 1925–30; infra + structure

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Explanation

The infrastructure is the basic foundation or underlying framework of an organization or system. In your house, the infrastructure is the system of beams, weight-bearing walls and the foundation that keeps it standing. Infrastructure often refers to the equipment and structures required by the military or by a country or region. Roads, bridges, and school buildings are part of our nation's infrastructure, and are necessary for the continued growth of our communities. This word was formed as a compound in English, using the prefix infra- "below, underneath."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

infrastructure infrastructures

The hack has prompted South Korea to call for increased protections for its digital infrastructure against cyberattacks.

From Barron's ● Nov. 3, 2026

The results are a windfall at a challenging time for the Saudi Arabian government, as attacks from Iran-aligned Houthis intensify—resulting in damage to airports and other critical infrastructure.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026

Oracle shares retreated 8.8% to $119.22 after the software maker unveiled plans to raise $20 billion of debt and equity as it looks to finance AI infrastructure.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

Liberal Democrat MP Alistair Carmichael, whose constituency covers Shetland, has urged the UK government to step up efforts to protect critical infrastructure.

From BBC ● Nov. 2, 2026

Officials and lawmakers now had to balance any spending on science against other burgeoning demands—for social programs, highways, school buildings, and other physical infrastructure.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

By contrast stablecoins move through proprietary, fragmented infrastructures.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 25, 2026

Even if these infrastructures are not directly hit—Tehran is a city of 14 million people in a densely populated urban environment.

From Slate ● Mar. 3, 2026

More than $97 million was recovered and 11,432 malicious infrastructures were dismantled.

From Barron's ● Feb. 15, 2026

"The proposed decentralized latency-aware peer-selection mechanism can serve as a foundation for future blockchain platforms that support real-time, mission-critical IoT services, ultimately enabling more secure, responsive, and trustworthy digital infrastructures," explains Dr. Nguyen.

From Science Daily ● Jan. 22, 2026

Some information technology experts warned that computers would not be able to distinguish the correct meaning of 00, resulting in widespread failure of vital infrastructures.

From "The First State of Being" by Erin Entrada Kelly

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Related Words

• base
• framework

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