masonry

noun

ma·​son·​ry ˈmā-sᵊn-rē 

plural masonries

1

a

: something constructed of materials used by masons

b

: the art, trade, or occupation of a mason

c

: work done by a mason

2

capitalized : freemasonry

Examples of masonry in a Sentence

a structure built of masonry

Recent Examples on the Web

Instead of a smooth wooden surface, there’s a stunning maze of masonry laid out in lines and rings. —Melissa Locker, Travel + Leisure, 9 Nov. 2023

The quake brought down walls made from stone and masonry not designed to withstand quakes, covering whole communities with rubble and leaving residents picking their way precariously through remains. —Sam Metz and Mosa’ab Eishamy, The Christian Science Monitor, 9 Sep. 2023

The quake brought down walls made from stone and masonry not constructed to endure quakes, covering whole communities with rubble and leaving residents picking their way precariously through remains. —Sam Metz and Mosa'ab Elshamy, Chicago Tribune, 9 Sep. 2023

Use a masonry sponge, which holds a lot of moisture, as an applicator. —Jeanne Huber, Washington Post, 8 Sep. 2023

Search and rescue efforts end at the site of the Iowa apartment building collapse after remains of 3 victims are recovered from the rubble, Davenport officials say The building was undergoing masonry repairs to its western wall before the collapse. —Virginia Langmaid, CNN, 7 Sep. 2023

Retrofit deadlines have already passed for unreinforced masonry buildings, or brick buildings, as well as for concrete tilt-up buildings such as warehouses — built by tilting up concrete walls that had been made on the ground and attaching them to a roof. —Sandhya Kambhampati, Los Angeles Times, 7 July 2023

The tragedy hit some buildings made from stone and masonry not designed to withstand quakes. —USA TODAY, 9 Sep. 2023

The 1925 Santa Barbara and 1933 Long Beach earthquakes offered early warnings that unreinforced masonry buildings could become deathtraps in a major quake. —Rong-Gong Lin Ii, Los Angeles Times, 12 Sep. 2023

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Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

masonry

noun

ma·​son·​ry ˈmās-ᵊn-rē 

plural masonries

1

: something built of stone, brick, or concrete

2

: the art, trade, or occupation of a mason

3

: the work done by a mason