- present participle of build.
building
Americannoun
-
a relatively permanent enclosed construction over a plot of land, having a roof and usually windows and often more than one level, used for any of a wide variety of activities, as living, entertaining, or manufacturing.
-
anything built or constructed.
-
the act, business, or practice of constructing houses, office buildings, etc.
noun
-
something built with a roof and walls, such as a house or factory
-
the act, business, occupation, or art of building houses, boats, etc
Synonym Usage
Building, edifice, structure refer to something built. Building and structure may apply to either a finished or an unfinished product of construction, and carry no implications as to size or condition. Edifice is a more formal word and narrower in application, referring to a completed structure, and usually a large and imposing one. Building generally connotes a useful purpose (houses, schools, business offices, etc.); structure suggests the planning and constructive process.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of building
First recorded in 1250–1300, building is from the Middle English word byldinge. See build, -ing 1
Explanation
Building is the process of making something. Building Lego cities and towns is the favorite activity of many kids. When a construction company is building a structure like a grocery store or a school, you can say it's building a building. Anything from a small house to a skyscraper can be called a building, and both meanings of the word come from the verb build, with its Old English root byldan, "build or construct a house."
Vocabulary lists containing building
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.
Significant heat has been building in Portugal and south-west Spain recently.
From BBC • Jul. 6, 2026
Beijing has spent hundreds of millions of dollars building sports stadiums, presidential palaces, hospitals and roads in Pacific island nations.
From Barron's • Jul. 6, 2026
It has also slashed restaurants’ outdoor-dining fees and implemented AI-based software to speed processing of building and business permits.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 6, 2026
The former second-round pick is suddenly one of the Lakers’ primary summer league players and hopes to use the experience as an important stepping stone, building up his game while also establishing a leadership voice.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 5, 2026
With the crop in, we work building a cabin.
From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
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.
