con·struct
kən-ˈstrəkt 
constructed; constructing; constructs
1
2
: to draw (a geometrical figure) with suitable instruments and under specified conditions
Construct a regular hexagon with sides 3 inches long.
3
: to set in logical order
con·struct
ˈkän-ˌstrəkt
1
: something constructed by the mind: such as
a
: a theoretical entity
… the deductive study of abstract constructs …—
Daniel J. Boorstin
Daniel J. Boorstin
b
: a working hypothesis or concept
The unconscious was a construct that came from the daily effort to understand patients.
2
: a product of ideology, history, or social circumstances
Privacy is more than a social construct or an idea; it is a condition of the body.—Sallie Tisdale
Sallie TisdaleSynonyms
Examples of construct in a Sentence
Verb
They plan to construct a barn behind the house.
The author constructs all the stories around one theme.
Construct a triangle that has sides of equal length.
Noun
He argues that time is a subjective construct with no objective existence.
Recent Examples on the WebThe New Yorker, 29 Apr. 2024
The structure has a long history of nurturing creativity since it was constructed in 1940.
—Seth Combs, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Apr. 2024
The wooden pier is the longest of its kind on the West Coast and has been rebuilt five times since it was first constructed in 1888, so many times that it may not be considered the same pier.
—Jireh Deng, Los Angeles Times, 27 Apr. 2024
The dress has a playful, flowy shape constructed of breathable, wrinkle-resistant Supima cotton and comes in four colors, including classic gray and black (plus bold hues like orchid pink and rosewood red).
—Kristine Solomon, Travel + Leisure, 26 Apr. 2024
The best toddler plates and bowls are constructed from durable materials and come with helpful features.
—Katrina Cossey, Parents, 26 Apr. 2024
His ability to construct composition around an existential situation is a form of artistic voodoo.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 24 Apr. 2024
China’s fledgling air force, with barracks and hangars still being constructed in the north, was easily defeated by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force.
—Susan Tate Ankeny, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Apr. 2024
The dress had been constructed from a boudoir-ish bodice, which distended into a full-skirted ballgown, giving the impression of deliberate deshabillé, as if the design had been left unfinished on the mannequin.
—Daniel Rodgers, Vogue, 17 Apr. 2024
Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 27 Mar. 2024
The concrete and glass structure was designed to resemble a ship, with 12 glass sails and, in a similar glass-panel construct, the watch’s case, dial, lugs and hands are made of a single 200-kilo block of sapphire.
—Carol Bresler, Robb Report, 13 Mar. 2024
There’s still a fair amount of time spent inside the VR game, for instance, but those scenes are much less tedious here, because Jin is the primary player, and Jess Hong makes palpable the pleasure Jin takes at being inside this bizarre virtual construct.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 9 Mar. 2024
Art Mazor, Deloitte's Global Human Capital Practice Leader, believes that to overcome the gap between knowing and doing, leaders will need to let go of the mindsets, operating constructs, and proxies of the past.
—Lindsay Kohler, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2024
Lauren and Jrue Holiday wanted to help and inspire others while affecting change to social and economic constructs.
—Jim Owczarski, Journal Sentinel, 10 Jan. 2024
Linking existing hardware into a network is much faster than building individual constructs in specific locations.
—Victoria Chynoweth, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2024
Sports provides a comfortable, familiar construct in which the outcomes are unpredictable.
—Keith Matheny, Detroit Free Press, 19 Jan. 2024
Observing the moon was probably the first way that people conceptualized this quintessentially human construct.
—Rebecca Boyle, The Atlantic, 3 Jan. 2024
Verb
Such wisdom fills the pages of this immensely entertaining history, which is constructed around medieval guidebooks and travelogues, and highlights dazzling destinations like Constantinople and Rhodes under the Knights Hospitaller.
—The New Yorker, 29 Apr. 2024
The structure has a long history of nurturing creativity since it was constructed in 1940.
—Seth Combs, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Apr. 2024
The wooden pier is the longest of its kind on the West Coast and has been rebuilt five times since it was first constructed in 1888, so many times that it may not be considered the same pier.
—Jireh Deng, Los Angeles Times, 27 Apr. 2024
The dress has a playful, flowy shape constructed of breathable, wrinkle-resistant Supima cotton and comes in four colors, including classic gray and black (plus bold hues like orchid pink and rosewood red).
—Kristine Solomon, Travel + Leisure, 26 Apr. 2024
The best toddler plates and bowls are constructed from durable materials and come with helpful features.
—Katrina Cossey, Parents, 26 Apr. 2024
His ability to construct composition around an existential situation is a form of artistic voodoo.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 24 Apr. 2024
China’s fledgling air force, with barracks and hangars still being constructed in the north, was easily defeated by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force.
—Susan Tate Ankeny, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Apr. 2024
The dress had been constructed from a boudoir-ish bodice, which distended into a full-skirted ballgown, giving the impression of deliberate deshabillé, as if the design had been left unfinished on the mannequin.
—Daniel Rodgers, Vogue, 17 Apr. 2024
Noun
Sweeping the nation The sweeper is a fascinating construct.
—Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 27 Mar. 2024
The concrete and glass structure was designed to resemble a ship, with 12 glass sails and, in a similar glass-panel construct, the watch’s case, dial, lugs and hands are made of a single 200-kilo block of sapphire.
—Carol Bresler, Robb Report, 13 Mar. 2024
There’s still a fair amount of time spent inside the VR game, for instance, but those scenes are much less tedious here, because Jin is the primary player, and Jess Hong makes palpable the pleasure Jin takes at being inside this bizarre virtual construct.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 9 Mar. 2024
Art Mazor, Deloitte's Global Human Capital Practice Leader, believes that to overcome the gap between knowing and doing, leaders will need to let go of the mindsets, operating constructs, and proxies of the past.
—Lindsay Kohler, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2024
Lauren and Jrue Holiday wanted to help and inspire others while affecting change to social and economic constructs.
—Jim Owczarski, Journal Sentinel, 10 Jan. 2024
Linking existing hardware into a network is much faster than building individual constructs in specific locations.
—Victoria Chynoweth, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2024
Sports provides a comfortable, familiar construct in which the outcomes are unpredictable.
—Keith Matheny, Detroit Free Press, 19 Jan. 2024
Observing the moon was probably the first way that people conceptualized this quintessentially human construct.
—Rebecca Boyle, The Atlantic, 3 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'construct.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near construct
Cite this Entry
“Construct.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/construct. Accessed 2 May. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
construct
noun
con·struct
ˈkän-ˌstrəkt
: something constructed especially by mental synthesis
form a construct of a physical object by mentally assembling and integrating sense-data
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