BUILDING

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does building mean? 

• BUILDING (noun)
  The noun BUILDING has 4 senses:

1. a structure that has a roof and walls and stands more or less permanently in one place

2. the act of constructing something

3. the commercial activity involved in repairing old structures or constructing new ones

4. the occupants of a building

  Familiarity information: BUILDING used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• BUILDING (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A structure that has a roof and walls and stands more or less permanently in one place

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

building; edifice

Context example:

it was an imposing edifice

Hypernyms ("building" is a kind of...):

construction; structure (a thing constructed; a complex entity constructed of many parts)

Meronyms (parts of "building"):

annex; annexe; extension; wing (an addition that extends a main building)

antechamber; anteroom; entrance hall; foyer; hall; lobby; vestibule (a large entrance or reception room or area)

corner; quoin ((architecture) solid exterior angle of a building; especially one formed by a cornerstone)

corner; nook (an interior angle formed by two meeting walls)

cornerstone (a stone at the outer corner of two intersecting masonry walls)

cornerstone (a stone in the exterior of a large and important building; usually carved with a date and laid with appropriate ceremonies)

court; courtyard (an area wholly or partly surrounded by walls or buildings)

cullis (a gutter in a roof)

elevator; lift (lifting device consisting of a platform or cage that is raised and lowered mechanically in a vertical shaft in order to move people from one floor to another in a building)

exterior door; outside door (a doorway that allows entrance to or exit from a building)

floor; level; storey; story (a structure consisting of a room or set of rooms at a single position along a vertical scale)

foundation stone (a stone laid at a ceremony to mark the founding of a new building)

heat; heating; heating plant; heating system (utility to warm a building)

interior door (a door that closes off rooms within a building)

roof (a protective covering that covers or forms the top of a building)

room (an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling)

scantling; stud (an upright in house framing)

shaft (a vertical passageway through a building (as for an elevator))

frame; skeletal frame; skeleton; underframe (the internal supporting structure that gives an artifact its shape)

staircase; stairway (a way of access (upward and downward) consisting of a set of steps)

upstairs (the part of a building above the ground floor)

wall (an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure)

window (a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air)

crawl space; crawlspace (low space beneath a floor of a building; gives workers access to wiring or plumbing)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "building"):

ministry (building where the business of a government ministry is transacted)

eatery; eating house; eating place; restaurant (a building where people go to eat)

presbytery (building reserved for the officiating clergy)

planetarium (a building housing an instrument for projecting the positions of the planets onto a domed ceiling)

house of God; house of prayer; house of worship; place of worship (any building where congregations gather for prayer)

rest house (a building used for shelter by travelers (especially in areas where there are no hotels))

packinghouse (a building where foodstuffs are processed and packed)

outbuilding (a building that is subordinate to and separate from a main building)

opium den (a building where opium is sold and used)

office block; office building (a building containing offices where work is done)

observatory (a building designed and equipped to observe astronomical phenomena)

dead room; morgue; mortuary (a building (or room) where dead bodies are kept before burial or cremation)

casino-hotel; hotel-casino (a building that houses both a hotel and a casino)

rink; skating rink (building that contains a surface for ice skating or roller skating)

Roman building (a building constructed by the ancient Romans)

rotunda (a building having a circular plan and a dome)

ruin (a ruined building)

school; schoolhouse (a building where young people receive education)

shooting gallery (a building (usually abandoned) where drug addicts buy and use heroin)

signal box; signal tower (a building from which signals are sent to control the movements of railway trains)

skyscraper (a very tall building with many stories)

student union (a building on a college campus dedicated to social and organizational activities of the student body)

tap house; tavern (a building with a bar that is licensed to sell alcoholic drinks)

telco building; telecom hotel (a building that houses telecommunications equipment)

temple (an edifice devoted to special or exalted purposes)

house; theater; theatre (a building where theatrical performances or motion-picture shows can be presented)

bagnio; bawdyhouse; bordello; brothel; cathouse; house of ill repute; house of prostitution; sporting house; whorehouse (a building where prostitutes are available)

library (a building that houses a collection of books and other materials)

abattoir; butchery; shambles; slaughterhouse (a building where animals are butchered)

apartment building; apartment house (a building that is divided into apartments)

architecture (an architectural product or work)

aviary; bird sanctuary; volary (a building where birds are kept)

bathhouse; bathing machine (a building containing dressing rooms for bathers)

bowling alley (a building that contains several alleys for bowling)

center; centre (a building dedicated to a particular activity)

chapterhouse (a building attached to a monastery or cathedral; used as a meeting place for the chapter)

club; clubhouse (a building that is occupied by a social club)

dorm; dormitory; hall; residence hall; student residence (a college or university building containing living quarters for students)

farm building (a building on a farm)

feedlot (a building where livestock are fattened for market)

firetrap (a building that would be hard to escape from if it were to catch fire)

gambling den; gambling hell; gambling house; gaming house (a public building in which a variety of games of chance can be played (operated as a business))

gazebo; summerhouse (a small roofed building affording shade and rest)

government building (a building that houses a branch of government)

glasshouse; greenhouse (a building with glass walls and roof; for the cultivation and exhibition of plants under controlled conditions)

hall (a large building for meetings or entertainment)

hall (a large building used by a college or university for teaching or research)

Hall of Fame (a building containing trophies honoring famous people)

hotel (a building where travelers can pay for lodging and meals and other services)

house (a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families)

house (a building in which something is sheltered or located)

health facility; healthcare facility; medical building (building where medicine is practiced)

Instance hyponyms:

Independence Hall (the building in Philadelphia where the Declaration of Independence was signed)

Houses of Parliament (the building in which the House of Commons and the House of Lords meet)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The act of constructing something

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

building; construction

Context example:

his hobby was the building of boats

Hypernyms ("building" is a kind of...):

creating from raw materials (the act of creating something that is different from the materials that went into it)

Domain member category:

reface (provide with a new facing)

wattle (build of or with wattle)

frame; frame up (construct by fitting or uniting parts together)

rebuild; reconstruct (build again)

groin (build with groins)

erect; put up; raise; rear; set up (construct, build, or erect)

preassemble; prefabricate (to manufacture sections of (a building), especially in a factory, so that they can be easily transported to and rapidly assembled on a building site of buildings)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "building"):

crenelation; crenellation (the action of constructing ramparts with gaps for firing guns or arrows)

bricolage (construction of something by whatver material are available)

rustication (the construction of masonry or brickwork in a rustic manner)

ship building; shipbuilding (the construction of ships)

road construction (the construction of roads)

grading; leveling (changing the ground level to a smooth horizontal or gently sloping surface)

dry walling (the activity of building stone walls without mortar)

assembly; fabrication (the act of constructing something (as a piece of machinery))

house-raising (construction by a group of neighbors)

erecting; erection (the act of building or putting up)

Derivation:

build (make by combining materials and parts)

Sense 3

Meaning:

The commercial activity involved in repairing old structures or constructing new ones

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

building; construction

Context example:

workers in the building trades

Hypernyms ("building" is a kind of...):

business; business enterprise; commercial enterprise (the activity of providing goods and services involving financial and commercial and industrial aspects)

Meronyms (parts of "building"):

masonry (the craft of a mason)

house painting; painting (the occupation of a house painter)

plumbery; plumbing (the occupation of a plumber (installing and repairing pipes and fixtures for water or gas or sewage in a building))

roofing (the craft of a roofer)

sheet-metal work (the craft of doing sheet metal work (as in ventilation systems))

shingling (the laying on of shingles)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "building"):

jerry-building (construction of inferior buildings for a quick profit)

Derivation:

build (be engaged in building)

build (order, supervise, or finance the construction of)

Sense 4

Meaning:

The occupants of a building

Classified under:

Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects

Context example:

the entire building complained about the noise

Hypernyms ("building" is a kind of...):

assemblage; gathering (a group of persons together in one place)

 Context examples 

The Guardian of the Gates led them through the streets until they came to a big building, exactly in the middle of the City, which was the Palace of Oz, the Great Wizard.

(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)

He then led the way inside, and went over the whole building from basement to attic.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

One of the twenty common amino acids (building blocks of proteins).

(Arginine, NCI Dictionary)

They are a most unpleasant couple, but fortunately I spend most of my time in the nursery and my own room, which are next to each other in one corner of the building.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Genes are the building blocks of inheritance.

(Genes and Gene Therapy, Genetics Home Reference)

The findings will guide the development of more energy-efficient and fire-safe buildings, made from natural materials, in the future.

(Visualising heat flow in bamboo could help design more energy-efficient and fire-safe buildings, University of Cambridge)

Genes are the building blocks of heredity.

(Genetic Disorders, NIH: National Library of Medicine)

A standardized representation of the location of a person, business, building, or organization.

(Address, NCI Thesaurus)

January 27 falls on a Monday, but you will feel the glow of these lovebird planets building over the weekend of January 25-26, making it a dazzler.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

The entrance through which you enter or leave a room or building used as an element of an address.

(Door, NCI Thesaurus)