construct

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   To build something by putting parts together.

   They constructed a wooden bridge across the river.

2. 2
   verb

   To form a sentence, argument, or theory by arranging ideas or words.

   A good essay is constructed around a clear central argument.

3. 3
   noun

   An idea or theory created in the mind rather than existing in reality.

   Some argue that race is a social construct.

Common collocations

• construct a building Verb + noun

Borrowed from Latin cōnstrūctus, from cōnstruō (“to heap together”), from com- (“together”) + struō (“to heap up, pile”). Doublet of construe.

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