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get to first base

 - 8 dictionary results

base

1[beys] noun, adjective, verb, based, bas⋅ing.
–noun
1. the bottom support of anything; that on which a thing stands or rests: a metal base for the table.
2. a fundamental principle or groundwork; foundation; basis: the base of needed reforms.
3. the bottom layer or coating, as of makeup or paint.
4. Architecture.
a. the distinctively treated portion of a column or pier below the shaft or shafts.
b. the distinctively treated lowermost portion of any construction, as a monument, exterior wall, etc.
5. Botany, Zoology.
a. the part of an organ nearest its point of attachment.
b. the point of attachment.
6. the principal element or ingredient of anything, considered as its fundamental part: face cream with a lanolin base; paint with a lead base.
7. that from which a commencement, as of action or reckoning, is made; a starting point or point of departure.
8. Baseball.
a. any of the four corners of the diamond, esp. first, second, or third base. Compare home plate.
b. a square canvas sack containing sawdust or some other light material, for marking first, second, or third base.
9. a starting line or point for runners, racing cars, etc.
10. (in hockey and other games) the goal.
11. Military.
a. a fortified or more or less protected area or place from which the operations of an army or an air force proceed.
b. a supply installation for a large military force.
12. Geometry. the line or surface forming the part of a figure that is most nearly horizontal or on which it is supposed to stand.
13. Mathematics.
a. the number that serves as a starting point for a logarithmic or other numerical system.
b. a collection of subsets of a topological space having the property that every open set in the given topology can be written as the union of sets of the collection.
c. a collection of neighborhoods of a point such that every neighborhood of the point contains one from the collection.
d. a collection of sets of a given filter such that every set in the filter is contained in some set in the collection.
14. Also called base line. Surveying. See under triangulation (def. 1).
15. Painting.
a. vehicle (def. 10).
b. Also called carrier. inert matter, used in the preparation of lakes, onto which a coloring compound is precipitated.
16. Photography. a thin, flexible layer of cellulose triacetate or similar material that holds the light-sensitive film emulsion and other coatings, esp. on motion-picture film.
17. Chemistry.
a. a compound that reacts with an acid to form a salt, as ammonia, calcium hydroxide, or certain nitrogen-containing organic compounds.
b. the hydroxide of a metal or of an electropositive element or group.
c. a group or molecule that takes up or accepts protons.
d. a molecule or ion containing an atom with a free pair of electrons that can be donated to an acid; an electron-pair donor.
e. any of the purine and pyrimidine compounds found in nucleic acids: the purines adenine and guanine and the pyrimidines cytosine, thymine, and uracil.
18. Grammar. the part of a complex word, consisting of one or more morphemes, to which derivational or inflectional affixes may be added, as want in unwanted or biolog- in biological. Compare root 1 (def. 11), stem 1 (def. 16).
19. Linguistics. the component of a generative grammar containing the lexicon and phrase-structure rules that generate the deep structure of sentences.
20. Electronics.
a. an electrode or terminal on a transistor other than the emitter or collector electrodes or terminals.
b. the part of an incandescent lamp or electron tube that includes the terminals for making electrical connection to a circuit or power supply.
21. Stock Exchange. the level at which a security ceases a decline in price.
22. Heraldry. the lower part of an escutcheon.
23. bases, Armor. a tonlet formed of two shaped steel plates assembled side by side.
24. Jewelry. pavilion (def. 6).
25. in base, Heraldry. in the lower part of an escutcheon.
–adjective
26. serving as or forming a base: The walls will need a base coat and two finishing coats.
–verb (used with object)
27. to make or form a base or foundation for.
28. to establish, as a fact or conclusion (usually fol. by on or upon): He based his assumption of her guilt on the fact that she had no alibi.
29. to place or establish on a base or basis; ground; found (usually fol. by on or upon): Our plan is based on a rising economy.
30. to station, place, or situate (usually fol. by at or on): He is based at Fort Benning. The squadron is based on a carrier.
–verb (used without object)
31. to have a basis; be based (usually fol. by on or upon): Fluctuating prices usually base on a fickle public's demand.
32. to have or maintain a base: I believe they had based on Greenland at one time.
33. get to first base. first base (def. 2).
34. off base,
a. Baseball. not touching a base: The pitcher caught him off base and, after a quick throw, he was put out by the second baseman.
b. Informal. badly mistaken: The police were way off base when they tried to accuse her of the theft.
35. on base, Baseball. having reached a base or bases: Two men are on base.
36. touch base with, to make contact with: They've touched base with every political group on campus.

Origin:
1275–1325; ME (n.) < MF < L basis basis; cf. prisoner's base


1. Base, basis, foundation refer to anything upon which a structure is built and upon which it rests. Base usually refers to a literal supporting structure: the base of a statue. Basis more often refers to a figurative support: the basis of a report. Foundation implies a solid, secure understructure: the foundation of a skyscraper or a rumor.

first base

–noun
1. Baseball.
a. the first in counterclockwise order of the bases from home plate.
b. the position of the player covering the area of the infield near first base.
2. get to first base, Informal.
a. to succeed in the initial phase of a plan or undertaking: His suggestions for labor-saving techniques never got to first base.
b. to engage in petting that goes no further than kissing.

Origin:
1835–45, Americanism
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Cultural Dictionary

base

Any of a number of bitter-tasting, caustic materials. Technically, a material that produces negative ions in solution. A base is the opposite of an acid and has a pH of 7 to 14. A given amount of a base added to the same amount of an acid neutralizes the acid; water and a salt are produced. Alkalis are bases; ammonia is a common base.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Slang Dictionary
base

  1. mod.
    rude; gross. (California.) : You are so, like, base!
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Word Origin & History

base  (n.)
c.1325, from O.Fr. bas, from L. basis "foundation," from Gk. basis "step, pedestal," from bainein "to step" (see come). The military sense is from 1860. The chemical sense (1810) was introduced in Fr. 1754 by Fr. chemist Guillaume-François Rouelle (1703-70). The verb meaning "to place on a foundation" is from 1841.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: base
Pronunciation: 'bAs
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural bas·es /'bA-s&z/
1 : thatportion of a bodily organ or part by which it is attached to another more central structure of the organism base of the thumb>
2 a : the usually inactiveingredient of a preparation serving as the vehicle for the active medicinal preparation base of an ointment> b : the chief active ingredient of a preparationcalled also basis
3 a : any of various typically water-soluble and bitter tasting compounds that in solution have a pH greater than 7, are capable of reacting with an acidto form a salt, and are molecules or ions able to take up a proton from an acid or are substances able to give up an unshared pair of electrons to an acid —compare ALKALI b : any of the five purine or pyrimidine bases of DNA and RNA that include cytosine, guanine, adenine,thymine, and uracil
4 : FREEBASEbased /'bAst/ adjective
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

base (bās)
n.

  1. The part of an organ nearest its point of attachment.

  2. A fundamental ingredient; a chief constituent of a mixture.

  3. Any of a large class of compounds, including the hydroxides and oxides of metals, having a bitter taste, a slippery solution, the capacity to turn litmus blue, and to react with acids to form salts.

  4. A molecular or ionic substance capable of combining with a proton to form a new substance. Also called Brønsted base.

  5. A nitrogen-containing organic compound that combines in such a manner.

  6. A substance that provides a pair of electrons for a covalent bond with an acid.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Idioms & Phrases

get to first base

Also, reach first base.

  1. Succeed in the initial phase of something; meet with preliminary approval. For example, They were delighted that they'd gotten to first base in the negotiations. This term alludes to the first base of baseball, which is the first step toward scoring a run for the batter's team. [c. 1900]

  2. Reach the initial stage of sexual intimacy, such as kissing. For example, Mary is so shy that I can't even get to first base with her. [1920s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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