construction

American  

[kuhn-struhk-shuhn] / kənˈstrʌk ʃən /

noun

constructions plural

1. the act or art of constructing.

2. the way in which a thing is constructed.

   a building of solid construction.

3. something that is constructed; a structure.

4. the occupation or industry of building.

   He works in construction.

5. Grammar.

   1. the arrangement of two or more forms in a grammatical unit. Constructions involving bound forms are often called morphological, as the bound forms fif- and -teen. Those involving only free forms are often called syntactic, as the good man, in the house.

   2. a word or phrase consisting of two or more forms arranged in a particular way.

   3. a group of words or morphemes for which there is a rule in some part of the grammar.

6. explanation or interpretation, as of a law, a text, or an action.

   Synonyms:

   story, rendition, version

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construction British  

/ kənˈstrʌkʃən /

noun

1. the process or act of constructing or manner in which a thing is constructed

2. the thing constructed; a structure

3. 1. the business or work of building dwellings, offices, etc

   2. ( as modifier )

      a construction site

4. an interpretation or explanation of a law, text, action, etc

   they put a sympathetic construction on her behaviour

5. grammar a group of words that together make up one of the constituents into which a sentence may be analysed; a phrase or clause

6. geometry a drawing of a line, angle, or figure satisfying certain conditions, used in solving a problem or proving a theorem

7. an abstract work of art in three dimensions or relief See also constructivism

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• preconstruction
  noun
• constructional
  adjective
• constructionally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• constructions
  plural

Etymology

Origin of construction

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin constrūctiōn-, stem of constrūctiō “placement together, building,” from constrūct(us) “put together” ( see construct) + -iō -ion

Explanation

The creation or building of something is construction. Depending on your budget, if you are building a new house, you will get the construction of a castle, a house, a cottage, or a shack. The word construction has its roots in the Latin word construere, which itself has roots in com-, meaning "together," and struere meaning "to pile up." In addition to the building of property, the noun construction also refers to the building trade itself. If you work for a company that builds things — from offices to houses and bridges to dams — you work in construction, whether you are a carpenter at the work site or the secretary who schedules the jobs.

Example Sentences

The Journal estimated construction costs of the types of buildings damaged at NSA Bahrain would total about $400 million if they were to be rebuilt.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 26, 2026

"There are so many concerns, but for my family it will be the noise and chaos from the construction, my son won't cope with that."

From BBC • Jun. 26, 2026

The “security bubble,” as it has been dubbed online, has been in the works for months, and the ongoing construction was clearly visible.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 26, 2026

If major technology CEOs think hardware is getting too expensive due to the AI buildout then the solution is in their hands—scale back data-center construction.

From Barron's • Jun. 26, 2026

With the proceeds, he bought the Shack and the Shop, paid off his half of the construction company’s debts, then signed the company over to a grateful but stunned Uncle Bob….

From "Storm Runners" by Roland Smith

Related Words

• development
• manufacture
• plan
• planning
• structure
• system