English Reference

Word

constructing

Phoneticscon·struct·ing

US/kənˈstɹəktɪŋ/

UK/kənstɹˈʌktɪŋ/

Definitions

01building a structure

B2

v. building or putting together something large, like a bridge or a house.

v. the act of building or erecting a physical structure. Transitive; requires a direct object representing the entity being built.

“They are constructing a new office building in the city centre.”

“Constructing the suspension bridge required innovative engineering techniques to withstand the high winds of the coastal valley.”

Usage

Often used in the continuous tense to describe ongoing infrastructure projects.

02creating an idea or sentence

B2

v. creating an idea, a theory, or a sentence by putting different parts together.

v. the process of forming a mental or linguistic entity by combining various elements or arguments.

“The students are practicing constructing complex sentences in their English class.”

“The philosopher spent years constructing a logical framework that could account for both ethical intuition and rational self-interest.”

Academic

Usage

Common in academic contexts when discussing theories, arguments, or grammatical structures.

Antonyms

deconstructing

03the act of building

C1

n. the process or act of building something.

n. the action or process of construction. Used as a gerund noun to focus on the activity itself.

“The constructing of the monument took over ten years to finish.”

“The careful constructing of his public image was essential to his political success during the election cycle.”

Formal

Synonyms

Antonyms

Real-World Examples

“Rather than passively consuming a finished narrative, audiences actively participate in constructing and navigating the environment itself.”
ScienceDaily · 26 Jul 2026
“NASA then turned its focus to constructing the International Space Station, a task the Space Shuttle marvelously completed upon retiring in 2011.”
Ars Technica · 9 Jul 2026

This entry

Level
B2 · Upper Intermediate
Frequency
Frequent
Updated

Scan code

englishreference.com/q/constructing

English Reference