structural

[ struhk-cher-uhl ]

adjective

1. of or relating to structure; relating or essential to a structure.
2. resulting from or relating to political or economic structure: structural inequalities;

   structural reforms to the social safety net;

   structural inequalities;

   structural racism.

3. Biology. relating to organic structure; morphological.
4. Geology. of or relating to geological structure, as of rock or strata.
5. Chemistry. relating to or showing the arrangement or mode of attachment of the atoms that constitute a molecule of a substance. Compare structural formula.
6. 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

1. Building Trades.
   1. a part of a structure that carries a load.
   2. the structural member used for such a part.

structural

/ ˈstrʌktʃərəl /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or having structure or a structure
2. of, relating to, or forming part of the structure of a building
3. of or relating to the structure and deformation of rocks and other features of the earth's crust
4. of or relating to the structure of organisms; morphological
5. chem of, concerned with, caused by, or involving the arrangement of atoms in molecules

Derived Forms

• ˈstructurally, adverb

Other Words From

• struc·tur·al·ly adverb
• non·struc·tur·al adjective
• non·struc·tur·al·ly adverb
• un·struc·tur·al adjective
• un·struc·tur·al·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of structural¹

First recorded in 1825–35; structure + -al ¹

Example Sentences

If you find a problem there, you’ll have to make deep structural changes in your content marketing approach.

From Search Engine Watch

In a report published last week by the Oxford Internet Institute, researchers found that one of the most common traps organizations fall into when implementing algorithms is the belief that they will fix really complex structural issues.

From MIT Technology Review

She also wants training for staff on bias and structural racism.

From Voice of San Diego

D’Arcy also conceded to New Scientist that there is some concern that the acid treatment might affect the integrity of the bricks, to the extent that they might not be able to make up the main structural components of a building.

From Singularity Hub 

There’s a lot of data on how structural biology has come into its own in this pandemic.

From Nautilus

Nor do these studies address the structural and systematic issues that contribute to obesity, such as poverty and stress.

From The Daily Beast

Common sense is not a just a normative judgment about wisdom, but a structural feature of any functioning organization.

From The Daily Beast

Sadly, the end of the Cold War has given license to structural decay.

From The Daily Beast

But beneath them there are underlying structural issues that will be even harder to fix.

From The Daily Beast

As hard as those structural reforms will be, changing the culture may be even harder.

From The Daily Beast

Some structural features not previously used were found to have taxonomic significance.

From Project Gutenberg

Massinger and Field accepted frankly the structural awkwardness of their plot as they had fashioned or found it.

From Project Gutenberg

The structural fault is less surprising when it is ascertained to be fundamentalinevitable in the theme.

From Project Gutenberg

Structural wrought iron has a tenacity of 20 to 22 tons per sq. in.

From Project Gutenberg

Anatomically we find that we must place man with the apelike mammals, because of these numerous points of structural likeness.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• anatomical
• architectural
• basic
• constitutional
• skeletal