Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - architecture

 noun  Date: 1555  1. the art or science of building; specifically the art or practice of designing and building structures and especially habitable ones  2.  a. formation or construction resulting from or as if from a conscious act the ~ of the garden  b. a unifying or coherent form or structure the novel lacks ~  3. architectural product or work  4. a method or style of building  5. the manner in which the components of a computer or computer system are organized and integrated