deconstruction

[ dee-kuhn-struhk-shuhn ]

noun

1. the act or practice of breaking something down into constituent parts:

   The deconstruction of complex problems into smaller issues can make them easier to tackle.

2. 1. a philosophical and critical movement that questions all traditional assumptions about the ability of language to represent reality and emphasizes that a text has no stable reference or meaning.
   2. a critical movement that questions forms, hierarchies, and assumptions that are thought to be fixed because of the language traditionally used to describe those forms, hierarchies, and assumptions.

deconstruction

/ ˌdiːkənˈstrʌkʃən /

noun

1. a technique of literary analysis that regards meaning as resulting from the differences between words rather than their reference to the things they stand for. Different meanings are discovered by taking apart the structure of the language used and exposing the assumption that words have a fixed reference point beyond themselves

Derived Forms

• ˌdeconˈstructionist, nounadjective

Other Words From

• de·con·struc·tive adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of deconstruction¹

de- + construction

Example Sentences

One billion pounds of waste will be produced by the end of SONGS’ deconstruction, 80 percent of which is radioactively contaminated and has to be shipped to special landfills in Texas and Utah.

From Voice of San Diego

The first “Nier” game appears to be a deconstruction of “The Legend of Zelda” and video game formula.

From Washington Post

Without any explanation we watch art restorers at work, and the painstaking, technical deconstruction of a Rembrandt.

From The Daily Beast

The largest mass grave in America existed uneasily as both hallowed ground and deconstruction site.

From The Daily Beast

The standout of the collection was the designer's deconstruction of standard jacket cuts.

From The Daily Beast

She tends to go toward the Lady Gaga deconstruction, Alexander McQueen type of just out-there kind of costume.

From The Daily Beast

Game of Thrones is a show that provokes—or even forces—viewer evaluation, deconstruction, and discussion.

From The Daily Beast