structural
adj.adj. relating to how the parts of something are built or organized. You use this to talk about the physical frame of a building or the basic setup of a system.
adj. relating to the arrangement of and relations between the parts or elements of something complex. Often describes the physical integrity of a building or the fundamental organization of a system or society.
The earthquake caused serious structural damage to the old bridge.
The company needs structural changes to its management team to improve how decisions are made.
While the surface-level symptoms of the economic crisis were clear, the underlying structural weaknesses in the banking sector took much longer for regulators to identify and address.
From structure + -al, 19th century.
Typically placed before the noun it modifies. Frequently used in technical contexts like engineering, linguistics, or sociology.