reinforced concrete

American  

noun

1. concrete containing steel bars, strands, mesh, etc., to absorb tensile and shearing stresses.

---

reinforced concrete British  

noun

1. concrete with steel bars, mesh, etc, embedded in it to enable it to withstand tensile and shear stresses

---

Etymology

Origin of reinforced concrete

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

reinforced concrete

Across volatile regions, some critical infrastructure, like desalination plants and data centers, will need to be fortified with layers of reinforced concrete, duplicated to provide backups or potentially relocated underground—at significant cost.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 4, 2026

Some visually appealing examples are known as shells, and these have traditionally been made from reinforced concrete.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 5, 2025

Dr Thomas largely agrees, but explained that most new buildings in Jamaica were made of reinforced concrete, as required by national building codes.

From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2025

Crews will be installing steel girders — long boxes of reinforced concrete — over the freeway in order to build the vegetated bridge, according to Caltrans.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 11, 2024

It is easy to overlook, lying as it does in the shadow of a neighboring high-rise, which was then only a frame of reinforced concrete.

From "Circumference" by Nicholas Nicastro