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structure

[struhk-cher]

Origin

noun

mode of building, construction, or organization; arrangement of parts, elements, or constituents: a pyramidal structure.

something built or constructed, as a building, bridge, or dam.

a complex system considered from the point of view of the whole rather than of any single part: the structure of modern science.

anything composed of parts arranged together in some way; an organization.

the relationship or organization of the component parts of a work of art or literature: the structure of a poem.

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Biology. mode of organization; construction and arrangement of tissues, parts, or organs.

Geology.

the attitude of a bed or stratum or of beds or strata of sedimentary rocks, as indicated by the dip and strike.

the coarser composition of a rock, as contrasted with its texture.

Chemistry. the manner in which atoms in a molecule are joined to each other, especially in organic chemistry where molecular arrangement is represented by a diagram or model.

Sociology.

the system or complex of beliefs held by members of a social group.

the system of relations between the constituent groups of a society.

the relationship between or the interrelated arrangement of the social institutions of a society or culture, as of mores, marriage customs, or family.

the pattern of relationships, as of status or friendship, existing among the members of a group or society.

10.

the pattern of organization of a language as a whole or of arrangements of linguistic units, as phonemes, morphemes or tagmemes, within larger units.

COLLAPSE

verb (used with object)

11.

to give a structure, organization, or arrangement to; construct a systematic framework for.

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Structure is always a great word to know.

So is neo-Darwinism. Does it mean:

any modern theory of evolution holding that species evolve by natural selection acting on genetic variation

a mass of protoplasm found in most cells, directing their growth, metabolism, reproduction, and functioning in the transmission of genic characters

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Origin:
1400–50; late Middle English < Latin structūra, equivalent to struct(us) (past participle of struere to put together) + -ūra -ure

Related forms

de·struc·ture, verb (used with object), -tured, -tur·ing.

in·ter·struc·ture, noun

non·struc·ture, noun

pre·struc·ture, verb (used with object), -tured, -tur·ing.

Synonyms
1. system, form, configuration. 2. See building.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To structure

Collins

World English Dictionary

structure (ˈstrʌktʃə)

—n
1.	a complex construction or entity
2.	the arrangement and interrelationship of parts in a construction, such as a building
3.	the manner of construction or organization: the structure of society
4.	biology morphology; form
5.	chem the arrangement of atoms in a molecule of a chemical compound: the structure of benzene
6.	geology the way in which a mineral, rock, rock mass or stratum, etc, is made up of its component parts
7.	rare the act of constructing

—vb
8.	(tr) to impart a structure to

[C15: from Latin structūra, from struere to build]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

structure

c.1440, "action or process of building or construction," from L. structura "a fitting together, adjustment, building," from structus, pp. of struere "to pile, build, assemble," related to strues "heap," from PIE *stere- "to spread, extend, stretch out" (cf. Skt. strnoti "strews, throws down;" Avestan

EXPAND

star- "to spread out, stretch out;" Gk. stornymi "strew," stroma "bedding, mattress," sternon "breast, breastbone;" L. sternere "to stretch, extend;" O.C.S. stira, streti "spread," strama "district;" Rus. stroji "order;" Goth. straujan, O.H.G. strouwen, O.E. streowian "to sprinkle, strew;" O.E. streon "strain," streaw "straw, that which is scattered;" O.H.G. stirna "forehead," strala "arrow, lightning bolt;" O.Ir. fo-sernaim "spread out," srath "a wide river valley;" Welsh srat "plain"). Meaning "that which is constructed, a building or edifice" is from 1615. Structured "organized so as to produce results" is from 1959.

COLLAPSE

American Heritage

Medical Dictionary

structure struc·ture (strŭk'chər)
n.

The arrangement or formation of the tissues, organs, or other parts of an organism.
A tissue, an organ, or other formation made up of different but related parts.

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"That man is a creature who needs order yet yearns for change is the creative contradiction at the heart of the laws which structure his conformity and define his deviancy."

-Freda Adler

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