BASIS
What does "BASIS" mean?
The underlying support, principle, or starting point for something.
Meanings
- The foundation or main supporting principle of an idea, argument, or system. Trust is the basis of any working partnership.
- The way or frequency on which something is done or organised. Volunteers worked on a part-time basis.
- In mathematics, a set of vectors that spans a space and is linearly independent. Any vector in the plane can be written using a basis of two vectors. technical
Word origin
Directly from Latin 'basis', from Greek 'basis' meaning 'a step, pedestal, foundation', from 'bainein' (to go, step); its irregular plural 'bases' keeps the Greek form.
Remember it
BASIS = BASE + IS: the thing your argument 'is' built on. Note the plural is 'bases', not 'basises'.
A little poem
Pull at the basis, watch the rest unwind-
a house stands only on what you can't see behind.
couplet
Wordplay
- I argued my entire case on a daily basis. The judge asked which one - the foundation or the schedule.
What it teaches
Question the basis before the conclusion - a flawless argument on a false footing is still a fall.
Quick facts
What does BASIS mean?
The underlying support, principle, or starting point for something.
Is BASIS a valid word?
Yes — BASIS is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is BASIS?
BASIS has 5 letters and 2 syllables.
Where does BASIS come from?
Directly from Latin 'basis', from Greek 'basis' meaning 'a step, pedestal, foundation', from 'bainein' (to go, step); its irregular plural 'bases' keeps the Greek form.
What can BASIS teach us?
Question the basis before the conclusion - a flawless argument on a false footing is still a fall.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.