Edifice

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: /ˈɛd.ɪ.fɪs/

Alternative forms

• ædifice archaic

Origin

Middle English edifice, from Old French edifice, reborrowed from Latin aedificium ("building"), derived from aedificāre ("to build, establish") (whence also edify).

Full definition of edifice

Noun

1. A building; a structure; an architectural fabric, especially an imposing one; a large or fine building, public or private.
2. An abstract structure; a school of thought.
• 1904, Edward S. Holden, Copernicus, The real difficulty was moral, not intellectual. Was the whole edifice of Ptolemy to be destroyed?

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