build-out

noun

ˈbild-ˌau̇t 

variants or less commonly buildout

plural build-outs also buildouts

1

a

: work done to make a structure or system ready for use or to bring a construction or development project to a completed state

When the build-out of the campus is complete, as many as 7,500 students will attend class there.

—Janis L. Magin

b

: work done to expand a system (such as a telecommunications system)

The buildout of new infrastructure for digital cellular telephony is at such an early stage that it's impossible to predict what the performance of some of the systems will be.

—Brian C. Fenton

c

: a project or process involving such work

Of course, the Chinese are traveling and spending more in their own country too, in part because of a gigantic infrastructure build-out; China will have constructed more high-speed-rail capacity by the end of the decade than is currently operating in the rest of the world, some 10,000 miles' (16,000 km) worth.

—Bill Saporito

2

: a state in which an area has been fully developed

At build-out, the community is planned to include retail, restaurant and office space, a hotel, urban-style and loft apartments, townhomes, and condominiums.

—The Flower Mound (Texas) Leader

Examples of build-out in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Phase one is expected to last 14 months and will see the build-out and construction of the new spaces, Beck said. —Mars King, Twin Cities, 21 May 2025

According to Jeff Bower, a partner at Boise’s Givens Pursley law firm, which is representing Toll Brothers, the company expects to start construction this year, with full build-out not coming till 2032 or ‘33. —Nick Rosenberger, Idaho Statesman, 20 May 2025

The other is the inconvenience of the build-out to host a tournament, with its hospitality tents and grandstands. —Paul Sullivan, New York Times, 14 May 2025

Moreover, the defense build-out will not likely compensate for the impending loss of jobs in ailing industries such as the automotive sector. —Isabella M. Weber, Foreign Affairs, 14 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1955, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for build-out

• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout
• checkout
• closeout
• cutout
• devout
• dropout