v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Abased p. pr. & vb. n. Abasing. ] [ F. abaisser, LL. abassare, abbassare ; ad + bassare, fr. bassus low. See Base, a. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. To lower or depress; to throw or cast down; as, to abase the eye. [ Archaic ] Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

Saying so, he abased his lance. Shelton. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To cast down or reduce low or lower, as in rank, office, condition in life, or estimation of worthiness; to depress; to humble; to degrade. [ 1913 Webster ]

Whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased. Luke xiv. ll. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- To Abase, Debase, Degrade. These words agree in the idea of bringing down from a higher to a lower state. Abase has reference to a bringing down in condition or feelings; as, to abase the proud, to abase one's self before God. Debase has reference to the bringing down of a thing in purity, or making it base. It is, therefore, always used in a bad sense, as, to debase the coin of the kingdom, to debase the mind by vicious indulgence, to debase one's style by coarse or vulgar expressions. Degrade has reference to a bringing down from some higher grade or from some standard. Thus, a priest is degraded from the clerical office. When used in a moral sense, it denotes a bringing down in character and just estimation; as, degraded by intemperance, a degrading employment, etc. “Art is degraded when it is regarded only as a trade.” [ 1913 Webster ]

a. 1. Lowered; humbled. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Her.) [ F. abaissé. ] Borne lower than usual, as a fess; also, having the ends of the wings turned downward towards the point of the shield. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. Abjectly; downcastly. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. abaissement. ] The act of abasing, humbling, or bringing low; the state of being abased or humbled; humiliation. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. He who, or that which, abases. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Fig.: The fundamental or essential part of a thing; the essential principle; a groundwork. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Bot.) That extremity of a leaf, fruit, etc., at which it is attached to its support. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. (Pharmacy) The chief ingredient in a compound. [ 1913 Webster ]

7. (Dyeing) A substance used as a mordant. Ure. [ 1913 Webster ]

8. (Fort.) The exterior side of the polygon, or that imaginary line which connects the salient angles of two adjacent bastions. [ 1913 Webster ]

9. (Geom.) The line or surface constituting that part of a figure on which it is supposed to stand. [ 1913 Webster ]

10. (Math.) The number from which a mathematical table is constructed; as, the base of a system of logarithms. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

The trebles squeak for fear, the bases roar. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. [ 1913 Webster ]

13. (Mil.) The smallest kind of cannon. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

14. (Zool.) That part of an organ by which it is attached to another more central organ. [ 1913 Webster ]

15. (Crystallog.) The basal plane of a crystal. [ 1913 Webster ]

16. (Geol.) The ground mass of a rock, especially if not distinctly crystalline. [ 1913 Webster ]

17. (Her.) The lower part of the field. See Escutcheon. [ 1913 Webster ]

18. The housing of a horse. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

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. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

20. The lower part of a robe or petticoat. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

21. An apron. [ Obs. ] “Bakers in their linen bases.” Marston. [ 1913 Webster ]

22. The point or line from which a start is made; a starting place or a goal in various games. [ 1913 Webster ]

To their appointed base they went. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. [ 1913 Webster ]

24. A rustic play; -- called also prisoner's base, prison base, or bars. “To run the country base.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

25. (Baseball) Any one of the four bounds which mark the circuit of the infield. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ OE. bass, F. bas, low, fr. LL. bassus thick, fat, short, humble; cf. L. Bassus, a proper name, and W. bas shallow. Cf. Bass a part in music. ] 1. Of little, or less than the usual, height; of low growth; as, base shrubs. [ Archaic ] Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Low in place or position. [ Obs. ] Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Of humble birth; or low degree; lowly; mean. [ Archaic ] “A peasant and base swain.” Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Illegitimate by birth; bastard. [ Archaic ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Why bastard? wherefore base? Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. Of little comparative value, as metal inferior to gold and silver, the precious metals. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. Alloyed with inferior metal; debased; as, base coin; base bullion. [ 1913 Webster ]

7. Morally low. Hence: Low-minded; unworthy; without dignity of sentiment; ignoble; mean; illiberal; menial; as, a base fellow; base motives; base occupations. “A cruel act of a base and a cowardish mind.” Robynson (More's Utopia). “Base ingratitude.” Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

8. Not classical or correct. “Base Latin.” Fuller. [ 1913 Webster ]

9. Deep or grave in sound; as, the base tone of a violin. [ In this sense, commonly written bass. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

10. (Law) Not held by honorable service; as, a base estate, one held by services not honorable; held by villenage. Such a tenure is called base, or low, and the tenant, a base tenant. [ 1913 Webster ]

Base fee, formerly, an estate held at the will of the lord; now, a qualified fee. See note under Fee, n., 4. --
Base metal. See under Metal. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- Dishonorable; worthless; ignoble; low-minded; infamous; sordid; degraded. -- Base, Vile, Mean. These words, as expressing moral qualities, are here arranged in the order of their strength, the strongest being placed first. Base marks a high degree of moral turpitude; vile and mean denote, in different degrees, the lack of what is valuable or worthy of esteem. What is base excites our abhorrence; what is vile provokes our disgust or indignation; what is mean awakens contempt. Base is opposed to high-minded; vile, to noble; mean, to liberal or generous. Ingratitude is base; sycophancy is vile; undue compliances are mean. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Based p. pr. & vb. n. Basing. ] [ From Base, n. ] To put on a base or basis; to lay the foundation of; to found, as an argument or conclusion; -- used with on or upon. Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ See Base, a., and cf. Abase. ] 1. To abase; to let, or cast, down; to lower. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

If any . . . based his pike. Sir T. North. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To reduce the value of; to debase. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Metals which we can not base. Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. A game of ball, so called from the bases or bounds (four in number) which designate the circuit which each player must endeavor to make after striking the ball. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The ball used in this game. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Arch.) A board, or other woodwork, carried round the walls of a room and touching the floor, to form a base and protect the plastering; -- also called washboard (in England), mopboard, and scrubboard. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. 1. Born out of wedlock. Gay. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Born of low parentage. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Vile; mean. “Thy baseborn heart.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A furnace or stove in which the fuel is contained in a hopper or chamber, and is fed to the fire as the lower stratum is consumed. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. basse-cour. See Base, a., and Court, n. ] 1. The secondary, inferior, or rear courtyard of a large house; the outer court of a castle. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Law) An inferior court of law, not of record. [ 1913 Webster ]

p. p. & a. 1. Having a base, or having as a base; supported; as, broad-based. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. [ See Base, n., 18-21. ] Wearing, or protected by, bases. [ Obs. ] “Based in lawny velvet.” E. Hall. [ 1913 Webster ]

[ Named for Dr. Basedow, a German physician. ] (Med.) A disease characterized by enlargement of the thyroid gland, prominence of the eyeballs, and inordinate action of the heart; -- called also exophthalmic goiter. Flint. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. 1. causing formation of an alkali. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ OF. baselarde, LL. basillardus. ] A short sword or dagger, worn in the fifteenth century. [ Written also baslard. ] Fairholt. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Without a base; having no foundation or support. “The baseless fabric of this vision.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. an imaginary line or standard by which things are measured or compared; as, they established a baseline for the budget. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

2. the back line at each end of a tennis court. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

3. (Baseball) the lines between bases on a baseball field along which a baseball player must run while running the bases. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

4. a measurement that represents the value of a physical quantity (such as a voltage, or a level of radioactivity) in the absence of effects from other variables in a measurement, test or experiment; a control value. [ PJC ]

5. any horizontal line in a plot, graph, or diagram, or on a visual display in an electronic device, used as a reference point to which other values are referred. [ PJC ]

adv. 1. In a base manner; with despicable meanness; dishonorably; shamefully. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Illegitimately; in bastardy. [ Archaic ] Knolles. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. soubassement. Of uncertain origin. Cf. Base, a., Bastion. ] (Arch.) The outer wall of the ground story of a building, or of a part of that story, when treated as a distinct substructure. (See Base, n., 3 (a).) Hence: The rooms of a ground floor, collectively. [ 1913 Webster ]

Basement membrane (Anat.), a delicate membrane composed of a single layer of flat cells, forming the substratum upon which, in many organs, the epithelioid cells are disposed. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The quality or condition of being base; degradation; vileness. [ 1913 Webster ]

I once did hold it a baseness to write fair. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. See Bascinet. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Biochemistry, Genetics) a unit of double-stranded DNA or RNA consisting of two complementary bases on opposing strands of the double-stranded polynucleotide, bound together by hydrogen bonds and other non-covalent chemical forces. The bases comprising the base pairs are adenine, thymine, cytidine, and guanine. In normal DNA, the base adenine on one strand of DNA pairs with thymine on the opposite strand, and cytosine on one strand pairs with guanine on the opposite strand. The term base pair usually includes the sugar (ribose or deoxyribose) and the phosphate bound to each base to form a nucleotide unit. One base pair is sometimes used as a unit of length or size for DNA, and in this usage is abbreviated bp; as, a 100-bp fragment of DNA. A length of 1000 base pairs is a kilobase pair or kbp. [ PJC ]

n. the initial price of something (goods or services) without the additional charges that may be added, such as handling or shipping charges, sales tax, optional equipment charges, etc. [ PJC ]

See Bass viol. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Same as Prison base. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. an organized body of related information. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

adj. relying on observation or experiment.
Syn. -- experimental, observational. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Debased p. pr. & vb. n. Debasing. ] [ Pref. de- + base. See Base, a., and cf. Abase. ] To reduce from a higher to a lower state or grade of worth, dignity, purity, station, etc.; to degrade; to lower; to deteriorate; to abase; as, to debase the character by crime; to debase the mind by frivolity; to debase style by vulgar words. [ 1913 Webster ]

The coin which was adulterated and debased. Hale. [ 1913 Webster ]

It is a kind of taking God's name in vain to debase religion with such frivolous disputes. Hooker. [ 1913 Webster ]

And to debase the sons, exalts the sires. Pope.

Syn. -- To abase; degrade. See Abase. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. (Her.) Turned upside down from its proper position; inverted; reversed. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The act of debasing or the state of being debased. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who, or that which, debases. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. diabase, fr. Gr. &unr_; a crossing or passing over, fr. &unr_;; &unr_; + &unr_; to go; -- so called by Brongniart, because it passes over to diorite. ] (Min.) A basic, dark-colored, holocrystalline, igneous rock, consisting essentially of a triclinic feldspar and pyroxene with magnetic iron; -- often limited to rocks pretertiary in age. It includes part of what was early called greenstone. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ Cf. Debase. ] To debase or degrade. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Nor you nor your house were so much as spoken of before I disbased myself. B. Jonson. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ Pref. em- + base, a. or v. t.: cf. OF. embaissier. ] To bring down or lower, as in position, value, etc.; to debase; to degrade; to deteriorate. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Embased the valleys, and embossed the hills. Sylvester. [ 1913 Webster ]

Alloy in coin of gold . . . may make the metal work the better, but it embaseth it. Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

Such pitiful embellishments of speech as serve for nothing but to embase divinity. South. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ From Embase, v. t. ] Act of bringing down; depravation; deterioration. South. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. (Chem.) The basic form of an organic amine which is capable of forming acid salts such as hydrochlorides. [ PJC ]

2. The basic form of a drug, often more powerful than a salt form because it is more readily absorbed into the blood stream. [ PJC ]

v. i. To ingest the basic form of a narcotic drug, usually by injection. [ PJC ]

n. [ Gr. gynh` a woman, female + E. base. ] (Bot.) A dilated base or receptacle, supporting a multilocular ovary. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To diminish in value. [ Obs. ] Hales. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. See Embase. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. (Mil.) located outside a military base; as, off-base housing. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ Pan- + base. So called in allusion to the number of metals contained in it. ] (Min.) Same as Tetrahedrite. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Mil.) A short cylinder connecting a trunnion with the body of a cannon. See Illust. of Cannon. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. sklhro`s hard + ba`sis base. ] (Zool.) The calcareous or hornlike coral forming the central stem or axis of most compound alcyonarians; -- called also foot secretion. See Illust. under Gorgoniacea, and Coenenchyma. -- Scler`o*ba"sic a. [1913 Webster]

a. Humbled by consciousness of inferiority, unworthiness, guilt, or shame. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. Degradation of one's self by one's own act. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Humiliation or abasement proceeding from consciousness of inferiority, guilt, or shame. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Arch.) The lowest member of a base when divided horizontally, or of a baseboard, pedestal, or the like. [ 1913 Webster ]