- present participle of build.
building
Americannoun
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buildings
plural
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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.
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anything built or constructed.
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the act, business, or practice of constructing houses, office buildings, etc.
noun
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something built with a roof and walls, such as a house or factory
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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.
See Examples For:
"A leaner organization will mean clearer ownership, faster decisions, and more time spent building rather than coordinating," the message said.
From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026
Robert De Niro has spent more than five decades building one of Hollywood’s most celebrated careers—and an incredibly unique mulitmillion-dollar property portfolio.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
Architect Ma Yansong, who designed the building with his firm MAD, said he’s heard the spaceship comparison, and that’s fine by him, but he’s also heard it likened to a cloud.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
Bret Johnsen, SpaceX’s chief financial officer, told investors last month the company is able to recover what it spends on building AI computing in less than a year.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 2, 2026
There are high-rise offices and impressive, colorful buildings, like the Metropolitan Theater, Crystal Arcade, and Jai Alai Building, a sports complex that is considered the finest art deco building in Asia.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
"We are worried about what is happening beneath our buildings," the 63-year-old said, asking to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation.
From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026
A dark wall appears from behind the buildings at Gyirong, on the Chinese side of the Nepal-Tibet border.
From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026
Roberts argued in dissent that the preservation group already had done that, noting that one of the group’s members is “deeply committed” to the preservation of historic American buildings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
A 1912 law says new buildings “shall not erected...on public grounds within the District of Columbia without express authority of Congress.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 31, 2026
“How many pink buildings can there be in Bermuda?”
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
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.
