base
UK[beɪs]US[beɪs]
n
The lowest part or edge of something, especially the part on which it rests or is supported.
n
A main or central part of something to which other parts are added.
n
A place used as a center of operations by the armed forces or others.
v
To use a particular city, country, etc. as the main place for a business, holiday, etc.
Etymology
The word 'base' entered English in the late 14th century from Old French, where 'bas' conveyed the sense of 'low, lowly'. This French term descended from the Latin 'basis', which meant a foundation or pedestal. The Latin word was a direct borrowing from Greek 'βάσις' (basis), originally signifying 'a step' or 'a place for standing', derived from the verb 'βαίνειν' (bainein), 'to go, to walk'. The conceptual journey is clear: from the concrete act of stepping or a place to stand, the meaning broadened in Latin to a foundational support, then narrowed in Old French to imply lowness, before English synthesized these ideas into the modern senses of a bottom support, a central starting point, or an operational headquarters.
Analysis
The modern English word 'base' is a simplex form derived as a whole from Old French 'bas', meaning 'low'. Its ultimate origin is the Latin 'basis', meaning 'foundation, pedestal', which itself came from Greek 'βάσις' (basis), meaning 'a stepping, a step, that on which one stands'.
Examples
The lamp has a heavy marble base.
The company's research is based in California.
The army established a forward base near the border.