, n. [F. base, L. basis, fr. Gr. ba`sis a stepping, step, a base, pedestal, fr. bai`nein to go, step, akin to E. come. Cf. Basis, and see Come.] 1.
The bottom of anything, considered as its support, or that on which something rests for support; the foundation; as, the base of a statue. The base of mighty mountains. Prescott.
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2.
Fig.: The fundamental or essential part of a thing; the essential principle; a groundwork.
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3. (Arch.) (a)
The lower part of a wall, pier, or column, when treated as a separate feature, usually in projection, or especially ornamented. (b)
The lower part of a complete architectural design, as of a monument; also, the lower part of any elaborate piece of furniture or decoration.
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4. (Bot.)
That extremity of a leaf, fruit, etc., at which it is attached to its support.
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5. (Chem.)
The positive, or non-acid component of a salt; a substance which, combined with an acid, neutralizes the latter and forms a salt; -- applied also to the hydroxides of the positive elements or radicals, and to certain organic bodies resembling them in their property of forming salts with acids.
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6. (Pharmacy)
The chief ingredient in a compound.
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7. (Dyeing)
A substance used as a mordant. Ure.
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8. (Fort.)
The exterior side of the polygon, or that imaginary line which connects the salient angles of two adjacent bastions.
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9. (Geom.)
The line or surface constituting that part of a figure on which it is supposed to stand.
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10. (Math.)
The number from which a mathematical table is constructed; as, the base of a system of logarithms.
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11. [See Base low.]
A low, or deep, sound. (Mus.) (a) The lowest part; the deepest male voice. (b) One who sings, or the instrument which plays, base. [Now commonly written bass.]
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-The trebles squeak for fear, the bases roar. Dryden.
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12. (Mil.)
A place or tract of country, protected by fortifications, or by natural advantages, from which the operations of an army proceed, forward movements are made, supplies are furnished, etc.
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13. (Mil.)
The smallest kind of cannon. [Obs.]
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14. (Zol.)
That part of an organ by which it is attached to another more central organ.
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15. (Crystallog.)
The basal plane of a crystal.
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16. (Geol.)
The ground mass of a rock, especially if not distinctly crystalline.
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17. (Her.)
The lower part of the field. See Escutcheon.
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18.
The housing of a horse. [Obs.]
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19. pl.
A kind of skirt (often of velvet or brocade, but sometimes of mailed armor) which hung from the middle to about the knees, or lower. [Obs.]
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20.
The lower part of a robe or petticoat. [Obs.]
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21.
An apron. [Obs.] Bakers in their linen bases. Marston.
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22.
The point or line from which a start is made; a starting place or a goal in various games.
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-To their appointed base they went. Dryden.
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23. (Surv.)
A line in a survey which, being accurately determined in length and position, serves as the origin from which to compute the distances and positions of any points or objects connected with it by a system of triangles. Lyman.
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24.
A rustic play; -- called also prisoner's base, prison base, or bars. To run the country base. Shak.
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25. (Baseball)
Any one of the four bounds which mark the circuit of the infield.
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Altern base. See under Altern. -- Attic base. (Arch.) See under Attic. -- Base course. (Arch.) (a) The first or lower course of a foundation wall, made of large stones or a mass of concrete; -- called also foundation course. (b) The architectural member forming the transition between the basement and the wall above. -- Base hit (Baseball), a hit, by which the batsman, without any error on the part of his opponents, is able to reach the first base without being put out. -- Base line. (a) A main line taken as a base, as in surveying or in military operations. (b) A line traced round a cannon at the rear of the vent. -- Base plate, the foundation plate of heavy machinery, as of the steam engine; the bed plate. -- Base ring (Ordnance), a projecting band of metal around the breech, connected with the body of the gun by a concave molding. H. L. Scott.
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