base

See also Base, and BASE

English

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

From Old French base, from Latin basis, from Ancient Greek βάσις (basis).

Noun

base (plural bases)

  1. Something from which other things extend; a foundation.
    1. A supporting, lower or bottom component of a structure or object.
  2. The starting point of a logical deduction or thought; (Basis).
  3. A permanent structure for housing military personnel and material.
  4. The place where decisions for an organization are made; headquarters.
  5. (cooking, painting) A basic but essential component or ingredient.
  6. (chemistry) Any of a class of generally water-soluble compounds, having bitter taste, that turn red litmus blue, and react with acids to form salts.
  7. Important areas in games and sports
    1. A safe zone in the children's games of tag and hide-and-go-seek
    2. (baseball) One of the three places that a runner can stand without being subject to being tagged out.
  8. (architecture) The lowermost part of a column, between the shaft and the pedestal or pavement.
  9. (biology, biochemistry) A nucleotide's nucleobase in the context of a DNA or RNA biopolymer.
  10. (botany) The end of a leaf, petal or similar organ where it is attached to its support.
  11. (electronics) The name of the controlling terminal of a bipolar transistor (BJT).
  12. (geometry) The lowest side of a in a triangle or other polygon, or the lowest face of a cone, pyramid or other polyhedron laid flat.
  13. (mathematics) A number raised to the power of an exponent.
    The logarithm to base 2 of 8 is 3.
  14. (mathematics) Alternative to radix.
  15. (topology) The set of sets from which a topology is generated.
  16. (topology) A topological space, looked at in relation to one of its covering spaces, fibrations, or bundles.
  17. (cheerleading) A cheerleader who stays on the ground.
  18. (linguistics) A morpheme (or morphemes) that serves as a basic foundation on which affixes can be attached.
Synonyms
  • (chemical compound that will neutralize an acid): alkali
Antonyms
  • (chemical compound that will neutralize an acid): acid
  • (end of a leaf): apex
Derived terms
Terms derived from base (noun)
Related terms
Translations
foundation
starting point
permanent structure for housing a military
headquarters
chemical compound that will neutralize an acid
safe zone in children's game
lowermost part of a column
baseball: one of the three places that a runner can stand in safety
colloquial term for a nucleotide
end of a leaf, petal or similar organ where it is attached to its support
electronics: controlling terminal of a transistor
lower, horizontal line in a triangle or the horizontal plane of a 3D object
number raised to the power of an exponent (mathematics)
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Translations to be checked

Verb

base (third-person singular simple present bases, present participle basing, simple past and past participle based)

  1. (transitive) To give as its foundation or starting point; to lay the foundation of.
    • 1992, Rudolf M. Schuster, The Hepaticae and Anthocerotae of North America: East of the Hundredth Meridian, volume V, page vii
      Firstly, I continue to base most species treatments on personally collected material, rather than on herbarium plants.
  2. (transitive) To be located (at a particular place).
Derived terms
Translations
have as its foundation or starting point
be located

Etymology 2

From Old French bas, from Late Latin bassus (“low”).

Adjective

base (comparative baser or more base, superlative basest or most base)

  1. (obsolete) Low in height; short.
  2. (obsolete) Of low value or degree.
    • 1603, John Florio, translating Michel de Montaigne, Essays, II.3:
      If thou livest in paine and sorrow, thy base courage is the cause of it, To die there wanteth but will.
  3. (archaic) Of low social standing or rank; vulgar, common.
  4. Morally reprehensible, immoral; cowardly.
  5. (now rare) Inferior; unworthy, of poor quality.
  6. Designating those metals which are not classed as precious or noble.
Usage notes
  • Said of fellows, motives, occupations, etc.
Synonyms
The terms below need to be checked and allocated to the definitions (senses) of the headword above. Each term should appear in the sense for which it is appropriate. Use the template {{sense|"gloss"}}, substituting a short version of the definition for "gloss".
Antonyms
Derived terms
terms derived from base (adjective)
  • base-born
  • base-bred
  • base coin
  • base tenant
  • base tenure
  • base-witted
Translations
low
of inferior quality
immoral
vulgar, common
describing metals
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Translations to be checked

Etymology 3

Probably a specific use of Etymology 1, above; perhaps also a development of the plural of bar.

Noun

base (uncountable)

  1. (now chiefly US, historical) Prisoners' bars. [from 15th c.]
    • 1596, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, V.8:
      So ran they all, as they had bene at bace, / They being chased that did others chase.

Etymology 4

Variant forms.

Acronym

base

  1. Alternative form of BASE.
Derived terms

See also

External links

Anagrams

↑Jump back a section

Catalan

Noun

base f (plural bases)

  1. base
  2. basis
  3. grounding
  4. foundation

Related terms

↑Jump back a section

Czech

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈbasɛ/

Noun

base

  1. dative singular of basa
  2. locative singular of basa
↑Jump back a section

Dutch

Dutch Wikipedia has an article on:

Wikipedia nl

EB1911 - Volume 01 - Page 001 - 1.svg This entry lacks etymological information. If you are familiar with the origin of this term, please add it to the page as described here.

Pronunciation

Noun

base f (plural basen, diminutive basetje)

  1. base (chemistry: class of compounds), alkali

Synonyms

Antonyms

Derived terms

  • basisch
  • basenpaar
  • basenvolgorde
  • Lewisbase

References

  • “base” in Woordenlijst Nederlandse Taal – Officiële Spelling, Nederlandse Taalunie. [the official spelling word list for the Dutch language]
↑Jump back a section

French

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /bɑz/
  • (France) IPA: /baz/
    help
  • (Quebec, formal) IPA: /bɑːz/
  • (Quebec, informal) IPA: /bɑʊ̯z/

Noun

base f (plural bases)

  1. base (bottom part of something)
  2. base (safe place)
  3. base, basis (fundamental belief)

Derived terms

↑Jump back a section

Italian

Italian Wikipedia has an article on:

Wikipedia it

Etymology

Latin basis.

Noun

base f (plural basi)

  1. base
  2. basis

Antonyms

Related terms

↑Jump back a section

Latin

Noun

base

  1. ablative singular of basis
↑Jump back a section

Old French

Etymology

Latin basis.

Noun

base f (oblique plural bases, nominative singular base, nominative plural bases)

  1. base (bottom part; supporting part)

Descendants

References

↑Jump back a section

Portuguese

Noun

base f (plural bases)

  1. basis
  2. base
  3. groundwork
↑Jump back a section

Spanish

Etymology

From Latin basis.

Noun

base f (plural bases)

  1. base
  2. basis
  3. (linear algebra) basis
  4. grounding
  5. foundation
  6. (basketball) point guard

Related terms

Verb

base (infinitive basar)

  1. Formal second-person singular (usted) imperative form of basar.
  2. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of basar.
  3. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of basar.
  4. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted?) present subjunctive form of basar.
↑Jump back a section

Venetian

Adjective

base f

  1. feminine plural of baso
↑Jump back a section
Last modified on 19 May 2013, at 20:46