Say it like this
- Our infrastructure can handle millions of users.
- We're investing in cloud infrastructure.
- The infrastructure team is working on a migration.
- This feature requires significant infrastructure changes.
- Infrastructure as Code makes deployments easier.
Use it at work
Planning
- We need to upgrade our infrastructure before the launch.
- Infrastructure costs are 30% of our budget.
Ops
- The infra team owns the Kubernetes clusters.
- Let's manage infrastructure as code with Terraform.
Incidents
- It's an infrastructure issue, not an app bug.
- Our infrastructure couldn't handle the traffic.
Don't say this
Infrastructure is a noun, not a verb. Use phrases like 'improve,' 'upgrade,' or 'scale' with infrastructure.
Practice
Try it
5 quick exercises
1. We cannot launch this feature without upgrading our database ________.
2. Which sentence is incorrect?
3. Your company is moving servers to the cloud. How do you say it naturally?
4. The ________ team is responsible for managing servers, networks, and databases.
5. Rewrite this sentence using 'infrastructure': 'The servers and networks that run our application need to be more reliable and faster.'
Say it out loud
Phrase 1 of 5
"Our infrastructure can handle millions of users."
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More about infrastructure
Real examples(5)
- in a standup
"The infrastructure team reported that we have successfully migrated 80 percent of our services to Kubernetes."
- in a code review
"This new feature will require infrastructure support for caching, so let's coordinate with the DevOps team."
- in a team meeting
"We need to scale our infrastructure before the Black Friday campaign begins."
- in an email
"The infrastructure audit revealed several security vulnerabilities that need immediate attention."
- in a technical discussion
"Moving to serverless infrastructure will reduce our operational overhead."
More mistakes(3)
Handle with care. Infrastructure is not a verb—avoid saying 'to infrastructure something.' It refers to the underlying systems and resources, not the action of building them.
- ✕The infrastructure is very fast.✓The infrastructure is highly performant.
Infrastructure is not typically described as 'fast'—use terms like 'performant,' 'scalable,' or 'reliable' instead.
- ✕We infrastructured everything last month.✓We upgraded the infrastructure last month.
Infrastructure cannot be used as a past-tense verb. Use 'upgraded,' 'implemented,' or 'deployed' instead.
- ✕The infrastructure team builds the applications.✓The infrastructure team builds and maintains the systems that run applications.
Infrastructure teams focus on underlying systems, not the application code itself.
Other forms(3)
- infrastructure noun
"Our cloud infrastructure is hosted on AWS."
- infrastructure (as modifier) noun (adjective modifier)
"We need an infrastructure engineer for this project."
- infrastructure noun (plural uncountable)
"Modern infrastructures rely heavily on containerization and orchestration."
Often used with(7)
- cloud infrastructure · Used to refer to servers and services hosted on cloud platforms like AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud
- infrastructure team · The group of engineers responsible for building, maintaining, and scaling infrastructure
- infrastructure cost · The financial expenses associated with running servers, storage, networking, and other infrastructure components
- infrastructure as Code (IaC) · A practice of managing infrastructure through code and automation rather than manual configuration
- scale infrastructure · To increase the capacity of infrastructure to handle more traffic or data
- infrastructure upgrade · An improvement or replacement of existing infrastructure systems
- underlying infrastructure · The foundational systems that support an application or service
Similar words(4)
- architecture · Similar but more commonly refers to system design decisions. Infrastructure is the actual systems themselves.
- platform · Can refer to infrastructure, but platform is broader and may include software frameworks and services.
- backend · Refers to servers and services, but is less formal and more application-focused than infrastructure.
- systems · More general term; infrastructure is more specific to the foundational technical systems.
Questions(6)
- What does infrastructure mean in software engineering?
- Infrastructure refers to the foundational systems and resources required to run software applications. This includes servers, databases, networks, cloud services, storage systems, and the tools to manage them. Think of it as the 'backbone' that supports all applications and services in a company.
- What is the difference between infrastructure and application?
- Infrastructure is the underlying systems and hardware that applications run on. Applications are the software programs that users interact with directly. For example, a banking app is an application that runs on infrastructure (servers, databases, networks) provided by the bank.
- Who manages infrastructure in a tech company?
- Infrastructure engineers and DevOps engineers manage infrastructure. They design systems, provision servers, configure networks, manage security, handle deployments, and ensure systems are reliable and scalable. In some companies, this role is called Site Reliability Engineer (SRE).
- What is cloud infrastructure?
- Cloud infrastructure refers to servers, storage, and networking resources hosted on cloud platforms like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, or Google Cloud. Instead of owning physical servers, companies rent computing resources from cloud providers.
- Is infrastructure a verb or a noun?
- Infrastructure is a noun. You cannot 'infrastructure' something. Instead, use verbs like 'upgrade,' 'scale,' 'deploy,' 'improve,' or 'maintain' with infrastructure. For example: 'We upgraded the infrastructure,' not 'We infrastructured it.'
- What is Infrastructure as Code?
- Infrastructure as Code (IaC) is a practice where engineers define and manage infrastructure using code and configuration files rather than manual processes. Tools like Terraform and CloudFormation allow teams to version control infrastructure and automate deployments.
