construction

American  

[kuhn-struhk-shuhn] / kənˈstrʌk ʃən /

noun

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

• constructional adjective
• constructionally adverb
• preconstruction noun

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” ( construct ) + -iō -ion

Example Sentences

On Tuesday, a federal judge ordered a halt to construction, saying Trump needed congressional approval.

From Barron's • Apr. 2, 2026

As a matter of story construction, too, the film is a failure.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026

To date, 33 new homes have been completed, more than 1,000 are under construction, and about 560 more have received building permits.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026

Indeed, single-family construction declined by about 7% in 2025, according to the National Association of Home Builders.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 1, 2026

The walls around us are cluttered with construction paper posters, marker-drawn announcements for spring sports tryouts, and Black History Month events.

From "The Sea in Winter" by Christine Day

Related Words

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