build ( builds plural & 3rd person present) ( building present participle) ( built past tense & past participle )
1 verb If you build something, you make it by joining things together.
(=construct)
Developers are now proposing to build a hotel on the site... V n
The house was built in the early 19th century... V n
♦
building n-uncount
In Japan, the building of Kansai airport continues.
♦
built adj adv ADJ, ADJ for n, ADJ to-inf
Even newly built houses can need repairs..., It's a product built for safety., ...structures that are built to last.
2 verb If you build something into a wall or object, you make it in such a way that it is in the wall or object, or is part of it.
If the TV was built into the ceiling, you could lie there while watching your favourite programme. be V-ed into n
3 verb If people build an organization, a society, or a relationship, they gradually form it.
He and a partner set up on their own and built a successful fashion company... V n
Their purpose is to build a fair society and a strong economy... V n
I wanted to build a relationship with my team. V n
♦
building n-uncount usu the N of n
...the building of the great civilisations of the ancient world.
4 verb If you build an organization, system, or product on something, you base it on it.
We will then have a firmer foundation of fact on which to build theories... V n prep
5 verb If you build something into a policy, system, or product, you make it part of it.
(=incorporate)
We have to build computers into the school curriculum... V n into n
How much delay should we build into the plan? V n into n
6 verb To build someone's confidence or trust means to increase it gradually. If someone's confidence or trust builds, it increases gradually.
Diplomats hope the meetings will build mutual trust... V n
Usually when we're six months or so into a recovery, confidence begins to build. V
Build up means the same as build., phrasal verb
The delegations had begun to build up some trust in one another... V P n (not pron)
We will start to see the confidence in the housing market building up again. V P, Also V P to n
7 verb If you buildon the success of something, you take advantage of this success in order to make further progress.
The new regime has no successful economic reforms on which to build. V on/upon n
8 verb If pressure, speed, sound, or excitement builds, it gradually becomes greater.
Pressure built yesterday for postponement of the ceremony... V
The last chords of the suite build to a crescendo. V to/into n
Build up means the same as build., phrasal verb
We can build up the speed gradually and safely... V P n (not pron)
Economists warn that enormous pressures could build up, forcing people to emigrate westwards. V P, Also V P to n
9 n-var Someone's build is the shape that their bones and muscles give to their body.
He's described as around thirty years old, six feet tall and of medium build...
10
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building
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built build up
1 phrasal verb If you build up something or if it builds up, it gradually becomes bigger, for example because more is added to it.
The regime built up the largest army in Africa... V P n (not pron)
Slowly a thick layer of fat builds up on the pan's surface. V P, Also V n P, V P to n
2 phrasal verb If you build someone up, you help them to feel stronger or more confident, especially when they have had a bad experience or have been ill.
Build her up with kindness and a sympathetic ear... V n P
3 phrasal verb If you build someone or something up, you make them seem important or exciting, for example by talking about them a lot.
The media will report on it and the tabloids will build it up... V n P
Historians built him up as the champion of parliament... V n P as n/-ing
4 →
build 6, 8 →
build-up →
built-up build up to phrasal verb If you build up to something you want to do or say, you try to prepare people for it by starting to do it or introducing the subject gradually. Other actions we need to take may be more difficult, and we may have to build up to them gradually... V P P n
apartment building ( apartment buildings plural ) , apartment house An apartment building or apartment house is a tall building which contains different apartments on different floors.
(AM) n-count
in BRIT, use block of flats
building ( buildings plural ) A building is a structure that has a roof and walls, for example a house or a factory. n-count
They were on the upper floor of the building..., Crowds gathered around the Parliament building.
building block ( building blocks plural ) If you describe something as a building block of something, you mean it is one of the separate parts that combine to make that thing. n-count usu with supp
...molecules that are the building blocks of all life on earth.
building site ( building sites plural ) A building site is an area of land on which a building or a group of buildings is in the process of being built or altered. n-count
(=construction site)
building society ( building societies plural ) In Britain, a building society is a business which will lend you money when you want to buy a house. You can also invest money in a building society, where it will earn interest. Compare savings and loan association. n-count
nation-building
Journalists sometimes use nation-building to refer to government policies that are designed to create a strong sense of national identity. (JOURNALISM) n-uncount oft N n
...calling for reconciliation and nation building after the bitter election campaign..., This revolutionary expansion required energetic nation-building policies.
sick building syndrome
Sick building syndrome is a group of conditions, including headaches, sore eyes, and tiredness, which people who work in offices may experience because the air there is not healthy to breathe. n-uncount