'Base line' definitions:

Definition of 'Base line'

From: GCIDE
  • Base \Base\, 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]