A building, or edifice, is an enclosed
structure
A structure is an arrangement and organization of interrelated elements in a material object or system, or the object or system so organized. Material structures include man-made objects such as buildings and machines and natural objects such as ...
with a
roof and
s standing more or less permanently in one place, such as a
house
A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...
or
factory (although there's also portable buildings).
Buildings come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and functions, and have been adapted throughout history for a wide number of factors, from
building materials available, to weather conditions, land prices, ground conditions, specific uses,
prestige, and aesthetic reasons. To better understand the term ''building'' compare the list of
nonbuilding structures.
Buildings serve several societal needs – primarily as shelter from weather, security, living space, privacy, to store belongings, and to comfortably live and work. A building as a shelter represents a physical division of the
human habitat
Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, an ...
(a place of comfort and safety) and the ''outside'' (a place that at times may be harsh and harmful).
Ever since the first
cave painting
In archaeology, Cave paintings are a type of parietal art (which category also includes petroglyphs, or engravings), found on the wall or ceilings of caves. The term usually implies prehistoric origin, and the oldest known are more than 40,000 ye ...
s, buildings have also become objects or canvasses of much artistic expression. In recent years, interest in