structural
Americanadjective
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of or relating to structure; relating or essential to a structure.
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resulting from or relating to political or economic structure: structural inequalities;
structural reforms to the social safety net;
structural inequalities;
structural racism.
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Biology. relating to organic structure; morphological.
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Geology. of or relating to geological structure, as of rock or strata.
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Chemistry. relating to or showing the arrangement or mode of attachment of the atoms that constitute a molecule of a substance.
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of, relating to, or based on the assumption that the elements of a field of study are naturally arranged in a systematic structure.
structural grammar.
noun
adjective
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of, relating to, or having structure or a structure
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of, relating to, or forming part of the structure of a building
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of or relating to the structure and deformation of rocks and other features of the earth's crust
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of or relating to the structure of organisms; morphological
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chem of, concerned with, caused by, or involving the arrangement of atoms in molecules
Other Word Forms
- nonstructural adjective
- nonstructurally adverb
- structurally adverb
- unstructural adjective
- unstructurally adverb
Etymology
Origin of structural
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Forest Service, which recently underwent a sweeping structural overhaul.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026
Its May plan will be addressing "structural vulnerabilities and market imbalances" and look to boost domestic production, including low-carbon alternatives.
From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026
To explore what changes in older lungs, researchers focused on fibroblasts, the structural cells that help maintain lung tissue.
From Science Daily • Apr. 3, 2026
Tottenham have had their own well-documented structural difficulties.
From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026
Several of his younger friends, however, trained in structural chemistry, thought the a-helix looked very pretty.
From "Double Helix" by James D. Watson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
