construction

The word “construction” means the process or business of building something, especially buildings and infrastructure. In plain terms, building something, or the way something (including a sentence) is put together.

“Construction” is pronounced kuhn-STRUHK-shuhn (/kənˈstɹʌkʃən/ in IPA).

Here is “construction” used in a sentence: “The new highway is still under construction.”

Words with a similar meaning to “construction” include building and construal.

The opposite of “construction” — its antonyms — is destruction.

“Construction” is a noun.

The word “construction” comes from Latin. From Latin constructio, from construere ("to build"). Equivalent to construct + -ion.

“Construction” is a very common word in modern English, usually learned at around the B1 level.

'Construction' is the wider term for the whole process and industry of putting structures together, including roads, bridges and tunnels as well as houses. 'Building' can mean the same activity but usually centres on structures with walls and roofs, and it doubles as a noun for the finished structure itself.

The industry is usually split into residential construction (homes and flats), commercial construction (offices, shops and hotels), industrial construction (factories and plants), and infrastructure or civil construction (roads, bridges, railways and utilities). Each type has its own methods, regulations and specialist contractors.

Construction builds the homes people live in, the workplaces they earn in, and the roads, hospitals and networks that connect everything. It is one of the largest employers in most economies and a key driver of growth, since building activity tends to rise and fall with a country's overall prosperity.