low in pitch; of the lowest pitch or range.
a bass voice; a bass instrument.
of or relating to the lowest part in harmonic music.
the bass part.
a bass voice, singer, or instrument.
any of numerous edible, spiny-finned, freshwater or marine fishes of the families Serranidae and Centrarchidae.
(originally) the European perch, Perca fluviatilis.
any of various sea perches, esp Morone labrax , a popular game fish with one large spiny dorsal fin separate from a second smaller one See also sea bass stone bass
the European perch See perch 2
any of various predatory North American freshwater percoid fishes, such as Micropterus salmoides , ( largemouth bass ): family Centrarchidae (sunfishes, etc)
the lowest adult male voice usually having a range from E a 13th below middle C to D a tone above it
a singer with such a voice
the lowest part in a piece of harmony See also thorough bass
informal short for bass guitar double bass
the low-frequency component of an electrical audio signal, esp in a record player or tape recorder
the knob controlling this on such an instrument
relating to or denoting the bass
bass pitch
the bass part
denoting the lowest and largest instrument in a family
a bass trombone
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English bas, bass(e), baas, variant of base 2 with ss of basso
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English bas(e), bace, earlier bærs, Old English bærs, bears (with loss of r before s as in ass 2, passel, etc.); cognate with Dutch baars, German Barsch, Old Swedish agh-borre
First recorded in 1675–85; variant of bast with unexplained loss of -t
A bass sound or instrument is the deepest. If a barbershop quartet sings “Happy Birthday” to you, the guy with the lowest voice is singing the bass part. A bass is also a type of saltwater fish. The word bass has two main meanings with separate pronunciations — bass with a high vowel sound (like base) ironically refers to very low sounds — bass instruments and singers are in the lowest part of the musical range, like the low rumble of a bass guitar. If you say bass with a low vowel sound, it's a type of fish. That kind of bass doesn’t add much to a harmony but is delicious with mashed potatoes.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
R&B singer-songwriter H.E.R. says her dad taught her to play the bass line of “Shining Star.”
From Salon • Jun. 7, 2026
“At first there was no guitar player — it was just him on bass and me on drums.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 1, 2026
Who do these guys regard as music’s greatest melodic bass player?
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 1, 2026
Things ramped up further in the 1990s, with jungle, garage and drum & bass fuelling underground raves and clubs.
From BBC • May 22, 2026
Thus the instrumentarium was born—the complete set of which includes bass bars, bass, alto/tenor, and soprano metallophones, xylophones and alto and soprano glockenspiels.
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
