framework

American  

[freym-wurk] / ˈfreɪmˌwɜrk /

noun

• frameworks
  plural

1. a basic structure, plan, or system, as of concepts, values, customs, or rules: The empire foundered, leaving its people in anarchy and lawlessness, as the framework of their society and culture collapsed around them.

   The bill, if passed, will provide a legal framework for privacy and data protection.

   The empire foundered, leaving its people in anarchy and lawlessness, as the framework of their society and culture collapsed around them.

2. a skeletal structure designed to support or enclose something.

3. a frame or structure composed of parts fitted and joined together.

4. the construction of frames.

5. work done in, on, or with a frame.

---

framework British  

/ ˈfreɪmˌwɜːk /

noun

1. a structural plan or basis of a project

2. a structure or frame supporting or containing something

3. frames collectively

4. work such as embroidery or weaving done in or on a frame

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• underframework
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• frameworks
  plural

Etymology

Origin of framework

First recorded in 1635–45; frame + work

Explanation

Framework refers to the initial structure of a building. If you ever wanted to walk through walls, you can get your chance when a new house has just the framework done, because the house will have walls with openings for windows and doors but no plaster or siding. From the literal meaning of framework — the initial structure of a building — English added figurative meanings. The noun framework, for example, can be any underlying structure something is built on, so you will see examples like: a framework for solving the problem, a framework for the computer program, and a framework for a new relationship.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

framework frameworks

The sharpening positions leave them without a clear framework for restarting talks, they said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026

The task forces will examine the macroeconomic impacts of AI, what data the Fed looks at, its balance sheet policy, its inflation framework and its communications.

From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026

Washington “should know that no proposal outside the framework of understanding will be accepted,” senior lawmaker Mohammad Rashidi told parliamentary news agency Icana.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026

The framework would be replaced by rules modelled on New Zealand's privacy legislation, which Reform says has the lightest-touch regime still recognised as being "adequate" by the EU.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

Still, the point is that all kinds of decisions can be cast into this framework and call for the informal evaluation of probabilities.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos

Delangue said he hopes that legal frameworks are maintained to recognise this and to make sure that the companies that make mistakes leading to the hacks are "accountable."

From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026

Rather than feed Chinese jurists bench books written by the climate plaintiffs’ bar, the group has run programs on using regulatory frameworks to address emissions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026

“Those concerns should be addressed through targeted legal and commercial frameworks rather than sweeping restrictions on techniques that play an important role in AI innovation.”

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026

"We need more predictive frameworks that link behavioral responses to ecological and evolutionary context. That includes incorporating species traits, past exposure to humans, predator communities, and landscape structure," says D'Souza.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 15, 2026

Pedagogically Sound: Including multiple perspectives and views on material not only enriches the curriculum content, but also provides radically different frameworks and paradigms to students on content.

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin

Related Words

• groundwork
• plan
• scheme
• structure