base

1 not following or in accordance with standards of honor and decency a base and sneaky act that is a clear violation of international law Synonyms ignoble, contemptible, currish, despicable, detestable, dirty, dishonorable, execrable, ignominious, low, low-down, low-minded, mean, nasty, paltry, snide, sordid, vile, wretchedRelated Words bad, black, evil, foul, immoral, iniquitous, miscreant, wicked, wrong; cruel, vicious; blamable, blameworthy, censurable, reprehensible; corrupt, debased, debauched, degenerate, depraved, dissolute, perverted; atrocious, villainous; unethical, unprincipled, unscrupulous; discreditable, disgraceful, disreputable, shameful, unworthyNear Antonyms ethical, honest, just, principled, righteous, right-minded, scrupulous; commendable, excellent, exemplary, good, moral, right; decent, proper, reputable, respectable, seemly; blameless, guiltless; incorruptible, irreproachable; uncorrupted, unerringAntonyms high, high-minded, honorable, lofty, noble, straight, upright, venerable, virtuous

2 showing, expressing, or offered in a spirit of humility or unseemly submissiveness her base obedience to every unprincipled action ordered by her boss Synonyms abject, humble, menial, servile, slavishRelated Words hangdog, lamblike, sheepish; demure, lowly, meek, modest, retiring, unassuming, unpretentious; fawning, sycophant, sycophantic, toadyishNear Antonyms arrogant, haughty, high-handed, imperious, lordly, supercilious, superior, uppity

1 an immaterial thing upon which something else rests the firm belief that complete trust between husband and wife is the base of any successful marriage Synonyms basis, bedrock, bottom, cornerstone, footing, foundation, ground, groundwork, keystone, root, underpinning, warp, warp and woof Related Words anchorage, bed, brace, bulwark, buttress, framework, infrastructure, mount, prop, shore, stay, substratum, substructure, support; assumption, justification, premise (also premiss), presumption, presupposition, rationale, supposition, theory, thesis, warrant; backbone, center, core, cornerstone, eye, focus, heart, hub, kernel, keystone, nucleus, seat; essence, quintessence, soul, touchstone

2 a place from which an advance (as for military operations) is made the army's base of attack was kept top secret until the battle began Synonyms bridgehead, foothold Related Words staging area, staging ground; beachhead, camp, center, emplacement, footing, front, headquarters, installation, station; airbase; bastion, fastness, fortress, stronghold; battlefront, field; toehold

3 a thing or place that is of greatest importance to an activity or interest the base of the industry is California's Silicon Valley Synonyms axis, center, capital, central, core, cynosure, epicenter, eye, focus, ground zero, heart, hub, locus, mecca, navel, nerve center, nexus, nucleus, omphalos, seatRelated Words headquarters; happy hunting ground, hive, hotbed, hot spot, playground, playland; kernel, nub, pith; deep, thick; essence, quintessence, soul; attraction, lodestone (also loadstone), magnet, polestar

4 the lowest part, place, or point the base of the mountain extends over a huge area Synonyms bottom, basement, foot, nadir, rock bottomRelated Words basis, bed, bedrock, foundation, ground, groundwork, keystone, seat, underpinningNear Antonyms acme, apex, climax, crest, culmination, height, meridian, peak, pinnacle, summit, tip, tip-top, zenithAntonyms head, top, vertex

5 the place from which a commander runs operations the army base is three miles down the road Synonyms command, command post, headquartersRelated Words home, seat

to find a basis she based her argument against the death penalty on careful research Synonyms ground, hang, predicate, rest Related Words establish, found; assume, postulate, premise, presume, presuppose, suppose