1
: building
especially
: a large or massive structure
2
: a large abstract structure
holds together the social edifice—
R. H. Tawney
R. H. Tawney
Examples of edifice in a Sentence
a magnificent edifice with a domed ceiling
the U.S. Capitol is one of our nation's most impressive edifices
Recent Examples on the Web
This ancient system, invented the same year as the Band-Aid, hides within the larger edifice of global aviation, which is often taken to symbolize the interconnectedness of the modern world.
—Joshua Rothman, The New Yorker, 29 Oct. 2024
Inside the late-19th-century edifice, designed by architect Thomas R. Jackson, firm founders Robin Standefer and Stephen Alesch have surveyed their lighting designs for Roman and Williams Guild, among them 12 new introductions.
—Sam Cochran, Architectural Digest, 19 Nov. 2024
The eye-catching five-story edifice, originally built in 1857, is inspired by the Pavillon de Flore at the Louvre Museum in Paris—a place dear to the house’s founder, Félix Courvoisier, who introduced the brand in 1828.
—Kevin Rozario, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024
The failure to do so left the successive administrations with a menu of terrible options for rescuing the BQE — and a strong incentive to pass the problem on to whoever’s in office when the whole edifice comes tumbling down.
—Justin Davidson, Curbed, 3 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for edifice 
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Joshua Rothman, The New Yorker, 29 Oct. 2024
Inside the late-19th-century edifice, designed by architect Thomas R. Jackson, firm founders Robin Standefer and Stephen Alesch have surveyed their lighting designs for Roman and Williams Guild, among them 12 new introductions.
—Sam Cochran, Architectural Digest, 19 Nov. 2024
The eye-catching five-story edifice, originally built in 1857, is inspired by the Pavillon de Flore at the Louvre Museum in Paris—a place dear to the house’s founder, Félix Courvoisier, who introduced the brand in 1828.
—Kevin Rozario, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024
The failure to do so left the successive administrations with a menu of terrible options for rescuing the BQE — and a strong incentive to pass the problem on to whoever’s in office when the whole edifice comes tumbling down.
—Justin Davidson, Curbed, 3 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for edifice
Cite this Entry
“Edifice.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/edifice. Accessed 5 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
edifice
noun
ed·i·fice
ˈed-ə-fəs 
: building sense 1
especially
: a large or impressive building (as a church)
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