A
superstructure is an upward extension of an existing structure above a baseline. This term is applied to various kinds of physical structures such as
buildings,
bridges, or
ships having the
degree of freedom zero (in the terms of theory of machines). The word "superstructure" is a combination of the
Latin prefix,
super (meaning
above, in addition) with the Latin
stem word,
structure (meaning
to build or
to heap up).