Library / English Dictionary

EDIFICE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A structure that has a roof and walls and stands more or less permanently in one place

Example:

it was an imposing edifice

Synonyms:

building; edifice

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("edifice" is a kind of...):

construction; structure (a thing constructed; a complex entity constructed of many parts)

Meronyms (parts of "edifice"):

antechamber; anteroom; entrance hall; foyer; hall; lobby; vestibule (a large entrance or reception room or area)

annex; annexe; extension; wing (an addition that extends a main building)

upstairs (the part of a building above the ground floor)

wall (an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure)

staircase; stairway (a way of access (upward and downward) consisting of a set of steps)

window (a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air)

frame; skeletal frame; skeleton; underframe (the internal supporting structure that gives an artifact its shape)

crawl space; crawlspace (low space beneath a floor of a building; gives workers access to wiring or plumbing)

shaft (a vertical passageway through a building (as for an elevator))

scantling; stud (an upright in house framing)

corner; quoin ((architecture) solid exterior angle of a building; especially one formed by a cornerstone)

corner; nook (an interior angle formed by two meeting walls)

room (an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling)

roof (a protective covering that covers or forms the top of a building)

cornerstone (a stone at the outer corner of two intersecting masonry walls)

cornerstone (a stone in the exterior of a large and important building; usually carved with a date and laid with appropriate ceremonies)

court; courtyard (an area wholly or partly surrounded by walls or buildings)

cullis (a gutter in a roof)

elevator; lift (lifting device consisting of a platform or cage that is raised and lowered mechanically in a vertical shaft in order to move people from one floor to another in a building)

exterior door; outside door (a doorway that allows entrance to or exit from a building)

floor; level; storey; story (a structure consisting of a room or set of rooms at a single position along a vertical scale)

foundation stone (a stone laid at a ceremony to mark the founding of a new building)

interior door (a door that closes off rooms within a building)

heat; heating; heating plant; heating system (utility to warm a building)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "edifice"):

ministry (building where the business of a government ministry is transacted)

dead room; morgue; mortuary (a building (or room) where dead bodies are kept before burial or cremation)

observatory (a building designed and equipped to observe astronomical phenomena)

office block; office building (a building containing offices where work is done)

opium den (a building where opium is sold and used)

outbuilding (a building that is subordinate to and separate from a main building)

packinghouse (a building where foodstuffs are processed and packed)

house of God; house of prayer; house of worship; place of worship (any building where congregations gather for prayer)

planetarium (a building housing an instrument for projecting the positions of the planets onto a domed ceiling)

presbytery (building reserved for the officiating clergy)

eatery; eating house; eating place; restaurant (a building where people go to eat)

rest house (a building used for shelter by travelers (especially in areas where there are no hotels))

rink; skating rink (building that contains a surface for ice skating or roller skating)

Roman building (a building constructed by the ancient Romans)

rotunda (a building having a circular plan and a dome)

ruin (a ruined building)

school; schoolhouse (a building where young people receive education)

shooting gallery (a building (usually abandoned) where drug addicts buy and use heroin)

signal box; signal tower (a building from which signals are sent to control the movements of railway trains)

skyscraper (a very tall building with many stories)

student union (a building on a college campus dedicated to social and organizational activities of the student body)

tap house; tavern (a building with a bar that is licensed to sell alcoholic drinks)

telco building; telecom hotel (a building that houses telecommunications equipment)

temple (an edifice devoted to special or exalted purposes)

house; theater; theatre (a building where theatrical performances or motion-picture shows can be presented)

bagnio; bawdyhouse; bordello; brothel; cathouse; house of ill repute; house of prostitution; sporting house; whorehouse (a building where prostitutes are available)

abattoir; butchery; shambles; slaughterhouse (a building where animals are butchered)

apartment building; apartment house (a building that is divided into apartments)

architecture (an architectural product or work)

aviary; bird sanctuary; volary (a building where birds are kept)

bathhouse; bathing machine (a building containing dressing rooms for bathers)

bowling alley (a building that contains several alleys for bowling)

center; centre (a building dedicated to a particular activity)

chapterhouse (a building attached to a monastery or cathedral; used as a meeting place for the chapter)

club; clubhouse (a building that is occupied by a social club)

dorm; dormitory; hall; residence hall; student residence (a college or university building containing living quarters for students)

farm building (a building on a farm)

feedlot (a building where livestock are fattened for market)

firetrap (a building that would be hard to escape from if it were to catch fire)

gambling den; gambling hell; gambling house; gaming house (a public building in which a variety of games of chance can be played (operated as a business))

gazebo; summerhouse (a small roofed building affording shade and rest)

government building (a building that houses a branch of government)

glasshouse; greenhouse (a building with glass walls and roof; for the cultivation and exhibition of plants under controlled conditions)

hall (a large building for meetings or entertainment)

hall (a large building used by a college or university for teaching or research)

Hall of Fame (a building containing trophies honoring famous people)

hotel (a building where travelers can pay for lodging and meals and other services)

casino-hotel; hotel-casino (a building that houses both a hotel and a casino)

house (a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families)

house (a building in which something is sheltered or located)

library (a building that houses a collection of books and other materials)

health facility; healthcare facility; medical building (building where medicine is practiced)

Instance hyponyms:

Independence Hall (the building in Philadelphia where the Declaration of Independence was signed)

Houses of Parliament (the building in which the House of Commons and the House of Lords meet)

Credits

 Context examples: 

A sudden scud of rain, driving full in her face, made it impossible for her to observe anything further, and fixed all her thoughts on the welfare of her new straw bonnet; and she was actually under the abbey walls, was springing, with Henry's assistance, from the carriage, was beneath the shelter of the old porch, and had even passed on to the hall, where her friend and the general were waiting to welcome her, without feeling one awful foreboding of future misery to herself, or one moment's suspicion of any past scenes of horror being acted within the solemn edifice.

(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)

Within the shadow, I may figuratively say, of that religious edifice immortalized by Chaucer, which was anciently the resort of Pilgrims from the remotest corners of—in short, said Mr. Micawber, in the immediate neighbourhood of the Cathedral.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

Peals of thunder so loud as to seem to shake the edifice to its foundation will roll round the neighbouring mountains—and during the frightful gusts of wind which accompany it, you will probably think you discern (for your lamp is not extinguished) one part of the hanging more violently agitated than the rest.

(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)