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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Basis \Ba"sis\ (b[=a]"s[i^]s), noun; pl. {Bases} (b[=a]"s[=e]z). [L. basis, Gr. ba'sis. See {Base}, noun]
1. The foundation of anything; that on which a thing rests. --Dryden.
2. The pedestal of a column, pillar, or statue. [Obs.]
If no basis bear my rising name. --Pope.
3. The groundwork; the first or fundamental principle; that which supports.
The basis of public credit is good faith. --A. Hamilton.
4. The principal component part of a thing.
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
bases See {base}
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
base
adjective
1: serving as or forming a base; "the painter applied a base coat followed by two finishing coats" [syn: {basal}]
2: (used of metals) consisting of or alloyed with inferior metal; "base coins of aluminum"; "a base metal"
3: of low birth or station ('base' is archaic in this sense); "baseborn wretches with dirty faces"; "of humble (or lowly) birth" [syn: {baseborn}, {humble}, {lowly}]
4: not adhering to ethical or moral principles; "base and unpatriotic motives"; "a base, degrading way of life"; "cheating is dishonorable"; "they considered colonialism immoral"; "unethical practices in handling public funds" [syn: {dishonorable}, {dishonourable}, {immoral}, {unethical}]
5: having or showing an ignoble lack of honor or morality; "that liberal obedience without which your army would be a base rabble"- Edmund Burke; "taking a mean advantage"; "chok'd with ambition of the meaner sort"- Shakespeare; "something essentially vulgar and meanspirited in politics" [syn: {mean}, {meanspirited}]
6: illegitimate [syn: {baseborn}]
7: debased; not genuine; "an attempt to eliminate the base coinage"
noun
1: any of various water-soluble compounds capable of turning litmus blue and reacting with an acid to form a salt and water; "bases include oxides and hydroxides of metals and ammonia" [syn: {alkali}]
2: installation from which a military force initiates operations; "the attack wiped out our forward bases" [syn: {base of operations}]
3: lowest support of a structure; "it was built on a base of solid rock"; "he stood at the foot of the tower" [syn: {foundation}, {fundament}, {foot}, {groundwork}, {substructure}, {understructure}]
4: place that runner must touch before scoring; "he scrambled to get back to the bag" [syn: {bag}]
5: (numeration system) the positive integer that is equivalent to one in the next higher counting place; "10 is the radix of the decimal system" [syn: {radix}]
6: the bottom or lowest part; "the base of the mountain"
7: (anatomy) the part of an organ nearest its point of attachment; "the base of the skull"
8: a lower limit; "the government established a wage floor" [syn: {floor}]
9: the fundamental assumptions from which something is begun or developed or calculated or explained; "the whole argument rested on a basis of conjecture" [syn: {basis}, {foundation}, {fundament}, {groundwork}, {cornerstone}]
10: a support or foundation; "the base of the lamp" [syn: {pedestal}, {stand}]
11: the bottom side of a geometric figure from which the altitude can be constructed; "the base of the triangle"
12: the most important or necessary part of something; "the basis of this drink is orange juice" [syn: {basis}]
13: the place where you are stationed and from which missions start and end [syn: {home}]
14: an intensely anti-western terrorist network that dispenses money and logistical support and training to a wide variety of radical Islamic terrorist group; has cells in more than 50 countries [syn: {al-Qaeda}, {Qaeda}, {al-Qa'ida}, {al-Qaida}]
15: (linguistics) the form of a word after all affixes are removed; "thematic vowels are part of the stem" [syn: {root}, {root word}, {stem}, {theme}, {radical}]
16: the stock of basic facilities and capital equipment needed for the functioning of a country or area; "the industrial base of Japan" [syn: {infrastructure}]
17: the principal ingredient of a mixture; "glycerinated gelatin is used as a base for many ointments"; "he told the painter that he wanted a yellow base with just a hint of green"; "everything she cooked seemed to have rice as the base"
18: a flat bottom on which something is intended to sit; "a tub should sit on its own base"
19: (electronics) the part of a transistor that separates the emitter from the collector
verb
1: use as a basis for; found on; "base a claim on some observation" [syn: {establish}, {ground}, {found}]
2: use (purified cocaine) by burning it and inhaling the fumes [syn: {free-base}]
3: assign to a station [syn: {station}, {post}, {send}, {place}] [also: {bases} (pl)]
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Definitions retrieved from local copies of the freely distributed DICT client/server software and databases. Click here for database copyright information. - KM |