kənzˈtrəkshən, kənˈstr- noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English construccioun, from Middle French construction, from Latin construction-, constructio, from constructus + -ion-, -io -ion
1.
a. obsolete : the act of construing (as in translating)
b. : the syntactical relation of a word, phrase, or clause to another
c. : the arrangement and connection of words in a sentence : syntactical arrangement
d. : any meaningful combination of lingustic forms — see morphological construction , syntactic construction
2.
a. : the act of putting parts together to form a complete integrated object : fabrication
during the construction of the bridge
b.
(1) : the form or manner in which something has been put together : design
several ships of similar construction
an analysis of the construction of a time bomb
(2) : the science or study of building or erection
two years in college mastering ship construction
c. : something built or erected : structure
raw new constructions along a highway
3.
a.
(1) : the act of construing, interpreting, or explaining a declaration or fact : interpretation
putting the worst construction on things innocent — Rudyard Kipling
also : the result of such an act
(2) : the discovery and application of the meaning and intention of a statement or fact to a particular state of affairs
the construction put on a statute by a lawyer
b.
(1) : the process of mentally uniting ideas or conceptions so as to form an organic or congruous object of thought
(2) : a procedure in logic that utilizes contextual definition to construct or analyze an actual entity (as a table) or an inferred entity (as a subatomic particle) by translating statements containing the name of the entity into synonymous statements that eliminate it in favor of names of experientially more fundamental elements (as sense data) ; also : the resultant conception or mental or logical entity formed through such a procedure
4.
a. : the act of constructing a geometrical figure ; also : its result
b. : an abstract or nonrepresentational sculptural creation composed of separate and often disparate elements