tectonic
adjective
- adjective Of or relating to construction or to architecture.
- adjective (biology) Structural.
- adjective (geology) Of, relating to, or caused by large-scale movements of the Earth's (or a similar planet's) lithosphere.
- adjective (figurative) Momentous, utter, vast.
Synonyms
Etymology
1650s, in sense of building, from Late Latin tectonicus, from Ancient Greek τεκτονικός (tektonikós, “pertaining to building”), from Ancient Greek τέκτων (téktōn, “carpenter, joiner, maker”), from Proto-Indo-European *teḱ- (“to make”) (from which also texture). In sense of geology, attested 1894. By surface analysis, Ancient Greek τέκτων (téktōn) + -ic (“pertaining to”).
Webster’s 1913
- adjective Of or pertaining to building or construction; architectural.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “tectonic”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details