From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishsubstructuresub‧struc‧ture /ˈsʌbˌstrʌktʃə $ -ər/ noun [countable] 1 MAINone of the structures (structure1(3)) within a society or organization that combines with others to form a whole2 TBa solid base under the ground, that supports a building above the ground → superstructure
Examples from the Corpus
substructure• It has a pretty standard crime-fiction substructure that provides the felt on which the characters shoot their various games of pool.• The fine early baroque church has substructures remaining of Romanesque date and style.• Lineages of descent from a female ancestor are thus prime substructures composing a macaque troop.• Here is a Roman theatre built over barrel-vaulted substructures but gently resting in part against the hillside. 