Architectural

How to spell architectural

13 letters · 5 syllables

How to pronounce architectural

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does architectural mean?

1. adjectiveRelating to the design and construction of buildings.

Architectural in a sentence

• The museum is famous for its bold architectural features.

• The firm specialises in architectural drawings for office towers.

Where does architectural come from?

Language of origin: Greek

This adjective traces back to the Greek arkhitekton, which literally meant 'chief builder', combining arkhi- 'chief, master' with tekton 'carpenter, builder'. The Greek word passed into Latin as architectus, then into French as architecte, and English adopted 'architect' in the 1500s for the person who designs buildings. The noun 'architecture' followed for the art and structure of building itself, and the adjective 'architectural' was formed in the 1700s by adding the Latin-derived suffix -al, meaning 'relating to'. The same tekton root that means 'builder' also sits inside 'technical' and 'tectonic', the latter describing how the plates of the earth are 'built' or arranged. For spelling, it helps to remember the hidden 'chi' (sounding like a hard 'k') in archi- and the 'tect' core, since the unstressed -ural ending is where many writers hesitate.

How the word is built

• archi- (chief, master)
• tect (from Greek tekton: builder, carpenter)
• -ure (noun-forming)
• -al (adjective suffix)