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base

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

4 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "base", 4-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "base" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "base" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

base is aEnglishnoun. It means: Something from which other things extend; a foundation. Pronounced /beɪs/. It ranks #942 in English word frequency. Often confused with be and BS.

Key facts for base
PropertyValue
Headwordbase
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/beɪs/
Letters4
Frequency rank#942
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of base in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for base is 4 letters long, classified as anoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /beɪs/. Corpus data places it at rank #942 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language.Wiktionary records 37 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 5 documented wrong-spelling variants for base, with forms such as "abse", "baes", and "basse". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "be", "BS", "bus", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- Proto-Indo-European *-tis Proto-Indo-European *gʷémtis Proto-Hellenic *gʷə́tis Ancient Greek βᾰ́σῐς (bắsĭs)bor. Latin basis Old French basebor. Middle English base English base From Middle English base, bas, baas, f… Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is base, spelled B-A-S-E, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    Something from which other things extend; a foundation.
  2. 2
    Something from which other things extend; a foundation.
  3. 3
    The starting point of a logical deduction or thought; basis.
  4. 4
    A site, structure, or both, usually durable and often permanent, for housing military personnel and materiel.
  5. 5
    The place where decisions for an organization are made; headquarters.
  6. 6
    A basic but essential component or ingredient.
  7. 7
    A substance used as a mordant in dyeing.
  8. 8
    Foundation: a cosmetic cream to make the face appear uniform.
  9. 9
    Any of a class of generally water-soluble compounds that turn red litmus blue and react with acids to form salts.
  10. 10
    Important areas in games and sports.
  11. 11
    Important areas in games and sports.
  12. 12
    The lowermost part of a column, between the shaft and the pedestal or pavement.
  13. 13
    A nucleotide's nucleobase in the context of a DNA or RNA biopolymer.
  14. 14
    The end of a leaf, petal or similar organ where it is attached to its support.
  15. 15
    The name of the controlling terminal of a bipolar transistor (BJT).
  16. 16
    The lowest side of a triangle or other polygon, or the lowest face of a cone, pyramid or other polyhedron laid flat.
  17. 17
    The lowest third of a shield (or field), or an ordinary occupying this space, the champagne. (Compare terrace.)
  18. 18
    A number raised to the power of an exponent.
  19. 19
    Synonym of radix.
  20. 20
    The set of sets from which a topology is generated.
  21. 21
    A topological space, looked at in relation to one of its covering spaces, fibrations, or bundles.
  22. 22
    A sequence of elements not jointly stabilized by any nontrivial group element.
  23. 23
    In hand-to-hand balance, the person who supports the flyer; the person that remains in contact with the ground.
  24. 24
    A morpheme (or morphemes) that serves as a basic foundation on which affixes can be attached.
  25. 25
    Dated form of bass.
  26. 26
    The smallest kind of cannon.
  27. 27
    The housing of a horse.
  28. 28
    A kind of skirt (often of velvet or brocade) which hung from the middle to about the knees, or lower.
  29. 29
    A kind of armour skirt, of mail or plate, imitating the preceding civilian skirt.
  30. 30
    The lower part of a robe or petticoat.
  31. 31
    An apron.
  32. 32
    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.
  33. 33
    A group of voters who almost always support a single party's candidates for elected office.
  34. 34
    The forces and relations of production that produce the necessities and amenities of life.
  35. 35
    A material that holds paint or other materials together; a binder.
  36. 36
    Ellipsis of base leg.
  37. 37
    freebase cocaine

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- Proto-Indo-European *-tis Proto-Indo-European *gʷémtis Proto-Hellenic *gʷə́tis Ancient Greek βᾰ́σῐς (bắsĭs)bor. Latin basis Old French basebor. Middle English base English base From Middle English base, bas, baas, from Old French base, from Latin basis, from Ancient Greek βάσις (básis). Doublet of basis and bass.

Synonyms

Antonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: abse,baes,basse,bbase,bsae

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for base

Misspelling Variants of "base"

abse4baes4basse5bbase5bsae4
Misspelling Variants of "base"

Frequency rank: #942 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "base"?
"base" is spelled B-A-S-E. The IPA pronunciation is /beɪs/.
What does "base" mean?
As a noun, "base" means: Something from which other things extend; a foundation.
What words are commonly confused with "base"?
"base" is commonly confused with "be", "BS", "bus". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "base"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "base" is /beɪs/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "base"?
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- Proto-Indo-European *-tis Proto-Indo-European *gʷémtis Proto-Hellenic *gʷə́tis Ancient Greek βᾰ́σῐς (bắsĭs)bor. Latin basis Old French basebor. Middle English base English base From Middle English base, ba... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter B in our English index:

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.