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

Etymology

Origin of infrastructure

First recorded in 1925–30; infra + structure

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

This obviously undermines the investment argument for the “picks and shovel” stocks of the AI infrastructure build-out, like the chip makers.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026

ASM International cited strong demand for artificial-intelligence infrastructure and tools needed to make chips.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Stronger atmospheric rivers would raise the threat of flooding and infrastructure damage.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 28, 2026

Since L.A. was awarded the Games almost a decade ago, the 18-year-old watched preparations slowly improve the infrastructure of his hometown.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

Finally I finished and said, “Can I be excused?” and they hardly even paused from their conversation about the strengths and weaknesses of Guinean infrastructure.

From "The Fault in Our Stars" by John Green

By contrast stablecoins move through proprietary, fragmented infrastructures.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 25, 2026

National infrastructures in many cases are not able to sustain mass-market electrification.

From BBC ● Mar. 10, 2026

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

From Barron's ● Feb. 15, 2026

The Rural New Deal lays out a far-ranging platform to rebuild the nation’s economically embattled small farms, revitalize rural towns, invest in community infrastructures, fund rural health care and schools, and other urgent priorities.

From Salon ● Dec. 20, 2025

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

Related Words

• base
• framework