basement

[beys-muhnt]

noun

1. a story of a building, partly or wholly underground.

2. (in classical and Renaissance architecture) the portion of a building beneath the principal story, treated as a single compositional unit.

3. the lowermost portion of a structure.

4. the substructure of a columnar or arched construction.

basement

/ ˈbeɪsmənt /

noun

1. 1. a partly or wholly underground storey of a building, esp the one immediately below the main floor Compare cellar

   2. ( as modifier )

      a basement flat

2. the foundation or substructure of a wall or building

3. geology a part of the earth's crust formed of hard igneous or metamorphic rock that lies beneath the cover of soft sedimentary rock, sediment, and soil

Word History and Origins

Origin of basement¹

First recorded in 1720–30; base ¹ + -ment

Example Sentences

The young couple fall into lust, then love, over beers in a Latin American cowboy bar, Uyghur street food and then in a shabby basement apartment.

From Los Angeles Times

The feature, which Gizmo had, was also visible when what was believed to be the same raptor ferried a fish to the “basement” of the tree.

From Los Angeles Times

Across the country, as civilians sheltered in basements or on the metro, the air defence guns went to work.

From BBC

I also got a lump in my throat when they went down into the basement where the old giant presses sat frozen.

From Los Angeles Times

There are lane arrows in some of the floorboards while original lane numbers are painted on the basement girders of the back-of-house spaces.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• cellar 
• storage 
• vault