world-building

American  

[wurld-bil-ding] / ˈwɜrldˌbɪl dɪŋ /

world building or worldbuilding

noun

1. the process of developing a detailed and plausible fictional world for a novel or story, especially in science fiction, fantasy, and video games.

   Drawing a convincing map with boundaries and landscape features is a natural starting point for world-building.

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Other Word Forms

• world-build
  verb (used without object)

Etymology

Origin of world-building

First recorded in 1820–25, referring to or contrasted with the Biblical creation of the world

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

world-building

They represented the two very different sides of his work as a production designer: the fantastical world-building of “Avatar” and the grounded historical realism of “Lincoln.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 12, 2026

“You don’t do as much world-building because it’s already done.”

From Salon ● Dec. 6, 2025

So went the prohibition on artificial intelligence in Frank Herbert’s 1965 novel “Dune,” and what was then a datum of fictional world-building is now a real and pressing concern.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 13, 2025

Lee’s movies might reflect the world, but he has perfected world-building of his own.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2025

They’d spent a small fortune on in-app purchases: skins and maps in Minecraft, V-Bucks in Fortnite, unlimited lives and gems in a new multiplayer world-building game.

From "Millionaires for the Month" by Stacey McAnulty