build

Pronunciation

• IPA: /bɪld/
•  Audio (US)^{help, file}
•  Audio (UK)^{help, file}

Homophones

• billed

Verb

Plain form build

Third person singular builds

Simple past built

Past participle built

Present participle building

People building a barn

1. (transitive) If you build something, you make it out of pieces of other things.

   I built the house with wood and stone.

   When the old bridge was built, the cars were slower.

   It's not easy to find the people who build bombs.

   We drove down the newly built roads.

2. (transitive) If you build something, you make it bigger, stronger, or better.

   This is a new idea that others can build upon.

   This plan gives us a foundation on which to build better, long-term water-sharing agreements.

   Baseball players drink milk to build muscles.

   The school is building a reputation for good teaching.

Synonyms

• make
• create
• put together

Antonyms

• destroy
• take apart

Related words

• building
• rebuild

Noun

Singular build

Plural builds

1. (countable) Your build is the shape of your body.

   He was a man of medium build with short hair.

2. (computers); (countable) A build is a version of a computer program.

   I downloaded the latest build last night to test it.

Synonyms

• version