basin

[ bey-suhn ]

noun

1. a circular container with a greater width than depth, becoming smaller toward the bottom, used chiefly to hold water or other liquid, especially for washing.
2. any container of similar shape, as the pan of a balance.
3. the quantity held by such a container:

   We need another basin of water to dilute the mixture.

4. a natural or artificial hollow place containing water.
5. a partially enclosed, sheltered area along a shore, often partly man-made or dredged to a greater depth, where boats may be moored:

   a yacht basin.

6. Geology. an area in which the strata dip from the margins toward a common center.
7. Physical Geography.
   1. a hollow or depression in the earth's surface, wholly or partly surrounded by higher land:

      river basin.

   2. drainage basin.
8. Botany. the depression in an apple, pear, or other pome at the end opposite the stem.

basin

/ ˈbeɪsən /

noun

1. a round container open and wide at the top with sides sloping inwards towards the bottom or base, esp one in which liquids are mixed or stored
2. Also calledbasinful the amount a basin will hold
3. a washbasin or sink
4. any partially enclosed or sheltered area where vessels may be moored or docked
5. the catchment area of a particular river and its tributaries or of a lake or sea
6. a depression in the earth's surface
7. geology a part of the earth's surface consisting of rock strata that slope down to a common centre

basin

/ bā′sĭn /

1. A region drained by a river and its tributaries.
2. A low-lying area on the Earth's surface in which thick layers of sediment have accumulated. Some basins are bowl-shaped while others are elongate. Basins form through tectonic processes, especially in fault-bordered intermontane areas or in areas where the Earth's crust has warped downwards. They are often a source of valuable oil.
3. An artificially enclosed area of a river or harbor designed so that the water level remains unaffected by tidal changes.

Other Words From

• basin·al adjective
• basined adjective
• basin·like adjective
• inter·basin adjective
• subbasin noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of basin¹

1175–1225; Middle English bacin < Old French < Late Latin bac ( c ) īnum ( bacc ( a ) water vessel, back ³ + -īnum -ine ¹ ); perhaps further related in Latin to beaker

Word History and Origins

Origin of basin¹

C13: from Old French bacin , from Late Latin bacchīnon , from Vulgar Latin bacca (unattested) container for water; related to Latin bāca berry

Example Sentences

Small ponds and lakes then replaced larger lake basins at a time when rainfall became inconsistent.

From Science News

The state was home to the test of the first atomic bomb in 1945, which is thought to have caused many cancers and other health problems throughout the basin range that was downwind from the test site.

From MIT Technology Review

Continuing to monitor these sites and comparing the records with data from devices in other ocean basins may help to clarify matters.

From Science News

Our current naming system is run by the World Meteorological Organization, which keeps a list of names to cycle through in each storm basin.

From Popular-Science

Around Mercury’s north and south poles, there are dozens of craters and basins that create permanent shadows.

From Nautilus

Another boy walks around and offers a water jug and basin for everyone to wash their hands.

From The Daily Beast

A lake may dry up in one region, but a new one can form when rains fill a basin elsewhere.

From The Daily Beast

He would smuggle the live birds inside his shirt to get them back to his cell, where he had a killing basin.

From The Daily Beast

A pair of magnitude 4-5 earthquakes in the Los Angeles basin.

From The Daily Beast

At the same instant he plunged his hand into the basin and drew out the flower.

From The Daily Beast

The last three years I've been in the Judith Basin, and southern outfits haven't begun to come in there yet.

From Project Gutenberg

When used by gentlemen it was common to carry a silver basin to spit in.

From Project Gutenberg

She peeped out at him two or three times as she stood washing herself in the little basin between the windows.

From Project Gutenberg

On the wash-stand a spangled white tulle hat lay drowning in a basin half full of water.

From Project Gutenberg

First let us take the case of a basin in which the water is allowed to flow out through a hole in its centre.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• bowl
• lagoon
• pan
• pool
• pot
• tub
• valley
• watershed