baseline

American  

[beys-lahyn] / ˈbeɪsˌlaɪn /

noun

1. Baseball. the area between bases base bases basis within which a base runner must keep when running from one base bases to another.

2. Tennis. the line at each end of a tennis court, parallel to the net, that marks the in-bounds limit of play.

3. (in perspective drawing) a horizontal line in the immediate foreground formed by the intersection of the ground plane and the picture plane.

4. a basic standard or level; guideline.

   to establish a baseline for future studies.

5. a specific value or values that can serve as a comparison or control.

6. Typography. the imaginary line on which the bottoms of primary letters align.

7. Surveying. triangulation1

8. Electronics. a horizontal or vertical line formed on the face of a cathode-ray tube by the sweep of the scanning dot.

9. Naval Architecture. a line on the body plan or sheer plan of a hull, representing a horizontal reference plane for vertical dimensions.

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adjective

1. basic or essential.

baseline British  

/ ˈbeɪsˌlaɪn /

noun

1. surveying a measured line through a survey area from which triangulations are made

2. an imaginary line, standard of value, etc, by which things are measured or compared

3. a line at each end of a tennis court that marks the limit of play

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Etymology

Origin of baseline

First recorded in 1740–50; base ¹ + line ¹

Example Sentences

Separately, distortions that may have been introduced by collecting prices later than usual in November will also persist, because they serve as a baseline for calculating changes in subsequent months.

From The Wall Street Journal

An aggressive approach from the baseline supports the American's opening shot, with a steely drive and work ethic underpinning his consistency.

From BBC

Something with structure, a little tang, the kind of steady baseline you can build a whole winter morning on.

From Salon

It then plummeted in April, after the 10% global baseline tariff took effect.

From The Wall Street Journal

For this analysis, researchers focused on 8,905 older adults who did not have hypertension at baseline and who were randomly assigned to take either Centrum Silver or a placebo every day.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• control
• criterion
• guideline
• measure
• standard