base-line 
(c) Milit., a line, as of frontier, sea-coast, or forts, taken 
by an army as the base of operations, from which move- 
ments have their origin, anil supplies of food, ammunition, 
ami men are sent to the front, and to which the army may 
retreat in case of disaster. Also called base. 
2. A line traced round a cannon behind the 
ven t._3. In the game of lawn-tennis, the end 
line of the court; the line from which the 
-104 
Stare on him with big lookes basen wide. 
Spenser, Mother Hub. Tale, 1. 670. 
baseness (bas'nes), n. [< base 1 + -ness.~\ 1. bashaw (ba-sha'), n. 
The state or condition of being base or low in 
scale ; meanness of grade ; lowliness, as of birth 
or station. 
Baseness of birth is a great disparagement to some men. 
Burton, Anat. of Mel., p. 347. 
He mixing with his proper sphere, 
She flnds the baseness of her lot. 
Tennyson, In Memoriam, Ix. 
2. That which is base or low ; anything of an 
ignoble grade or quality ; meanness, as of re- 
lation or employment. 
Some kinds of baseness 
Are nobly undergone. Shak., Tempest, iii. 1. baghful (bash'ful), a. 
I once did hold it a baseness to write fair. 
Shak., Hamlet, v. 2. 
3t. Illegitimacy of birth; bastardy. 
Why brand they us 
With base? with baseness, bastardy? 
Shak., Lear, i. 2. 
4. The state or quality of being morally mean 
or vile; vileness; worthlessness. 
Villains, 
Whose baseness all disgraceful words made one 
Cannot express ! 
Beau, and Fl., Knight of Malta, iv. 4. 
Equal baseness lived in sleeker times. 
Tennyson, Princess, v. 
player serves the ball. 4. In base-ball, the line 5. Of metals: (a) Liability to rust: opposed 
i- _ __ ._ T :A"U 4-1.,, ,,..>-< 4-n ,,././,..,.>, fJ\\ TrffTn/Yt* m* rl*>Tfl.An fiTiii.nt.v. 
connecting one base with the next. 
basely (bas'li), adv. 1, In a base manner; 
meanly; dishonorably. 
Warr'd he hath not, 
But basely yielded upon compromise 
That which his ancestors achiev'd with blows. 
Shak., Rich. II., ii. 1. 
2. In a base or mean condition ; illegitimately ; 
in bastardy. 
Two Mitylene brethren, basely born. 
3f. At a low rate ; cheaply. 
Them that desire to look big, and to live basely. 
Venner, Via Recta, iii. 52. (If. '. D.) 
to nobleness, (b) Inferior or debased quality, 
the result of having been alloyed with a cheaper 
metal ; spuriousness. 
We alledged the fraudulent obtaining his patent, the base- 
ness of his metal, and the prodigious sum to be coined. 
Swift. 
6f. Deepness of sound. 
The baseness or trebleness of tones. 
Bacon, Nat. Hist., 1 184. 
Knottes. basenett, n. See basinet. 
baseology (ba-se-ol'o-ji), n. [< Gr. pdaif, base, 
-t- -rayia, < Itretf, speak : see -ology. Cf . phrase- 
ology.] Fundamental philosophy. Krauth. 
PmOWT. lit awM, 1". ^. V** " ^-^ i/^-J T-,* * 4 rnl_ J? 3 A- lllellV, ll&H UU0H/1U) a 
baseman (bas'man), ,,; pi. basenen (-men), base-plate (bas ^plat) n. The foundation- equivalent to mode ,,,. 
bashlyk 
bish (space from which coal has been taken). 
[S. Wales.] 
lashaw (ba-sha'), n. [Early mod. E. also bas- 
saw, basha, baclia (P. baclia, It. btissa, bascia_, 
ML. bassa), etc., < Turk. &</.*/ (Pers. basha, 
badshah), another form (perhaps after bash, 
head, chief) of pasha, < Pers. pddshdh, a gov- 
ernor, prince, king: see pasJta.'] 1. Same as 
pasha. 2. A grandee; an important person- 
age; a bigwig. [Colloq.] Bashaw of three 
tails, a bashaw or pasha of the rank indicated by that 
number of horse-tails borne upon his standard. 
'Tis a very fine thing to be father-in-law 
To a very magnificent three-tailed Bashaw ! 
G. Coltnan the Younger, Blue Beard, ii. 5. 
^ ^ basil? + -ful.~] It. 
Wanting^in self-possession ; fearful ; dismayed. 
And bashful Henry depos'd, whose cowardice 
Hath made us bywords to our enemies. 
Shak., 3 Hen. VI., i. 1. 
2. Easily put to confusion ; modest to excess ; 
diffident; shy; sheepish. [Formerly used also 
in the sense of modest, unassuming, as a term 
of commendation.] 
Come, you pernicious ass [to the page], you bashful fool, 
must you be blushing? wherefore blush you now? 
Shak., 2 Hen. IV., ii. 2. 
3. Indicative of, accompanied with, or proceed- 
ing from bashfulness. 
The refusal which his cousin had steadfastly given him 
would naturally flow from her bashful modesty and the 
genuine delicacy of her character. 
Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, p. 95. 
4t. Exciting bashfulness or shame. 
A woman yet must blush when bashful is the case. 
Mir. for Mags., p. 59. 
bashfully (bash'ful-i), adi: It. Without self- 
possession; with misgivings. 2. In a bashful, 
modest, or shy manner. 
bashfulness (bash'ful-nes), n. The quality of 
being bashful ; excessive or extreme modesty ; 
timorous shyness ; want of confidence. [For- 
merly, like bashful, a term of commendation, 
Any one of the three players who in the game 
of base-ball are stationed at first, second, and 
third bases. 
basement (bas'ment), n. [= MLG. basement, 
basiment, oasmenf, base, pedestal; cf. F. sou- 
merty often used to mark the bases; hence, by 
tion , a base. [' 
Up from its deep reservoirs, from the mysterious base- 
gnonette, Reseda lutea : so called from its 
S Itfc. 1 1 low stati.rp 
ire - 
menu of the mountain, wells the silent stream. 
j. A. 'Symonds, Italy and Greece, p. 322. base-running (bas'run"ing), n. In base-ball, 
2. In arch. : (a) The portion of the elevation the act of running from base to base, 
of a structure which performs the function in bases, n. Plural of oasis. 
the design of constituting a support to those base-spirited (bas spir'i-ted), a. Having a 
portions which come above it; especially, the base or mean spirit; mean; cowardly, 
substructure of a columnar or arched construe- bash 1 (bash), v. [E. dial, or colloq. ; in popular 
tion, but also the lowest member in the design apprehension regarded as imitative (cf. bang, 
of a wall, etc. Compare 6ase2, 3. dash, smash, etc.), but prob. of Scand. origin, 
ndVflA4-Ari fntrm f\f haoLS /nriTw rKc /if fiiol 
It [the tomb] consisted of a square basement surrounded 
by a Doric peristyle with engaged columns, and surmounted 
by a pyramid, on the apex of which was placed the lion as 
the epitheraa, or crowning ornament. 
C. T. Newton, Art and Archceol., p. 83. 
(b) A floor or story which is wholly or in part 
beneath the surface of the ground, but is usu- 
ally, as distinguished from a cellar, well lighted, 
and fitted up and used for household or other 
usual purposes. 3. The act of basing, or the 
state of being based. [Bare.] Basement mem- 
brane, in anat., a delicate membrane, formed of flat- 
tened cells, which underlies the epithelium of mucous 
membranes, and covers that of secreting glands. Also 
assibilated form of bask 3 (now obs. ; cf. dial. 
basking, a sound thrashing), < Dan. baske, slap, 
drub, Sw. basa, whip, drub, beat.] I. trans. 
To strike with a heavy blow; beat violently; 
knock out of shape. [Colloq. and prov. Eng.] 
A woman, a whelp, and a walnut-tree, 
The more you bash 'em the better they be. 
Proverbial saying. 
[The above proverb refers to the practice of beating wal- 
nut-trees when in bud with poles, or beating off the fruit, 
a proceeding which was thought to increase their produc- 
tiveness.] 
II. intrans. To strike; knock. [Colloq. and 
prov. Eng.] 
called membrana propria. Basement tissue, the suii- bash 1 (bash), n, fCf. Dan. bask, a blow. Sw. 
,1 __ f ______ n i;_*_ i * A j.*.- . i . ,'' , * . . i_ T i 
bas, whipping, beating; from the verb.] A 
blow that knocks out of shape, or leaves a dent. 
and prov. Eng.] 
(bash), t>. [< ME. basshen, baschen, bat- 
sen, by apheresis for abashen, etc., abash: see 
abash.] I. trans. To daunt; dismay; abash; 
confound; confuse. 
She that bash'd the sun-god with her eyes. 
Greene and Lodge, Looking Glass for Lond. and Eng. 
H, intrans. 1. To be daunted, dismayed, or 
confounded. 
His countenaunce was bold, and bashed not 
For Guyons lookes, but scornefull eyeglaunce at him shot. 
Spenser, F. Q., II. iv. 37. 
Make Venus' leman, arm'd in all his pomp, 
Bash at the brightness of your hardy looks. 
Greene and Lodge, Looking Glass for Lond. and Eng. 
2. To be abashed or ashamed ; be put out of 
countenance. 
stance of basement membrane. English basement, the 
entrance-story of a city house when it is on the level of 
But the most conspicuous importation from Britain 
was the house New Yorkers call the English basement 
the house which has its entrance at the level of the street 
and its drawing-rooms upstairs, as distinguished from the 
Dutch type with its "high stoop" giving immediate ac- 
cess to the chief apartments. The Century, XXXI. 549. 
basement-story (bas'ment-st6' i 'ri), n. Same 
as basement, 2 (b). 
base-minded (bas'min // ded), a. Of a low spirit 
or mind ; mean ; dishonorably inclined. 
base-mindedly (bas'mln"ded-li), adv. In a 
base-minded or dishonorable manner. 
base-molding (bas'm61"ding), n. In arch., an 
ornamental molding at the base of any archi- 
tectural feature, as a column, pedestal, or espe- 
cially a wall. 
basenti a. [Appar. one of Spenser's made words. 
._. . ,. 
Cf. Sc. bazed, stupefied; "D.rcrbazen, astonish.] bash 3 (bash), v. t. [E. dial.; perhaps another 
Extended as with astonishment. 
He full of bashfulness and truth. 
Fairfax, tr. of Tasso's Godfrey of Bulloigne, ii. ] 
We have in England a particular bashfulness in every- 
thing that regards religion. Addiaon, Spectator, No. 458. 
=Syn, Bashfulness, Modesty, Diffidence, Shyness, Coy- 
ness, timidity, sheepishness. Bashfulness, literally readi- 
ness to be abashed, designates timidity and a disturbed 
state of feeling at meeting with others, or being brought 
into any prominence. It is natural and not unbecoming 
to the young, but with advancing years seems a defect; 
it is often a transient state of feeling. Modesty goes 
deeper into the character ; it is either a proper and be- 
coming distrust of one's self and one's powers, or a high- 
minded freedom from assurance and assumption ; it is 
always an excellence, unless explicitly said to be excessive. 
Dijfidence is a defect ; it is an undue distrust of self, with 
fear of being censured for failure, tending to unfit one for 
duty. Shyness is simply a constitutional shrinking from 
contact with others; it is the result of sensitiveness. 
Coyness is shyness where advances are made by others ; a 
shrinking from familiarity, perhaps in a coquettish way. 
Yet unask'd, 
His bashfulness and tenderness at war, 
He set himself beside her. 
Tennyson, Enoch Arden. 
It is to be noted that modesty in a man is never to be 
allowed as a good quality, but a weakness, if it suppresses 
his virtue, when he has at the same time a mind to exert 
himself. Sir R. Steele, Tatler, No. 52. 
As an actor, Mr. Cunningham obtained little reputa- 
tion, for his dij/idence was too great to be overcome. 
Johnson. 
For the very cause of shyness is an over-anxiety as to 
what people are thinking of you ; a morbid attention to 
your own appearance. 
Whately, Bacon's Essay of Discourse. 
The laugh that guides thee to the mark, 
When the kind nymph would coyness feign, 
And hides but to be found again. 
Dryden, tr. of Horace, I. ix. 36. 
bashi-bazouk (bash'i-ba-zok'), n. [Turk. 
bashi-bozuq, one who is in no particular dress 
or uniform, an irregular soldier or civilian, 
< bashi, head, head-dress, dress and appear- 
ance, 4- bozuq, spoilt, disorderly, bad, < boz, 
spoil, damage, destroy.] A volunteer and ir- 
regular auxiliary, serving in connection with 
the Turkish army for maintenance, but with- 
out pay or uniform. Bashi-bazouks are generally 
mounted, and because unpaid frequently resort to pillage. 
They are also at the command of municipal governors, 
and when detailed to accompany travelers or expeditions 
through the country they expect not only to be "found," 
but to be suitably rewarded with bakshish. 
bashlesst (bash'les), a. [< basli^ + -less. Cf. 
bashful.] Shameless; unblushing. Spenser. 
bashlyk (bash'lik), n. [Also bashlik, repr. Russ. 
bashluiku, a Caucasian hood or cowl.] A sort 
of hood or head-covering with long ends, usu- 
ally made in one piece, worn in Russia. The 
oiou ywaou/, i/. t,. L^J. UMU. | ptiii<*pa OUVVUVA ally luaue in uiic picue, wurii iii MIISMII. rue 
use of iosft 1 .] In coal-mining, to fill with rub- best qualities are of a fine light-brown camel's-hair cloth 
