underlying

[uhn-der-lahy-ing]

adjective

1. lying or situated beneath, as a substratum.

2. fundamental; basic.

   the underlying cause of their discontent.

3. implicit; discoverable only by close scrutiny or analysis.

   an underlying seriousness in his witticisms.

4. (of a claim, mortgage, etc.) taking precedence; anterior; prior.

5. Linguistics.,  belonging to an earlier stage in the transformational derivation of a sentence or other structure; belonging to the deep structure.

underlying

/ ˌʌndəˈlaɪɪŋ /

adjective

1. concealed but detectable

   underlying guilt

2. fundamental; basic

3. lying under

4. finance (of a claim, liability, etc) taking precedence; prior

Word History and Origins

Origin of underlying¹

First recorded in 1605–15; underlie + -ing ²

Example Sentences

These underlying tensions were just coming into focus.

From Los Angeles Times

However, if you have underlying conditions, experience breathlessness or find symptoms don't ease after three weeks, then you shouldn't hesitate to seek medical advice.

From BBC

“That said, this feels more like a sugar rush than a structural turnaround. The underlying EV market remains choppy.”

From Los Angeles Times

Common Defense, in fact, goes beyond an anti-war stance to address the underlying ills that make such wars so much more likely.

From Salon

The changes made by the OBR to the UK's underlying rate of growth could add considerably to the gap in the public finances Reeves has to bridge in the Budget.

From BBC

Related Words

• basic 
• elemental 
• hidden 

When To Use

What does underlying mean?

Underlying most literally means situated underneath—lying under something, as in We have to fix the underlying layer before repairing the surface.Underlying perhaps most commonly means fundamental or basic. This sense of the word is used to describe things that are the basis, foundation, or cause of something else. A person’s underlying beliefs are their most essential beliefs, the ones that all their other beliefs, opinions, or values are based on. A single, underlying issue may be the basis of many other problems. Symptoms are caused by an underlying condition or disease.Less commonly, underlying can be used to describe something that lies beneath in a figurative way, especially something that’s difficult to detect because it’s partially hidden, such as underlying guilt or the underlying theme of a poem.Underlying is also the continuous tense (ing- form) of the verb underlie, meaning to literally lie beneath or to be the basis or foundation of, as in This is the main problem that underlies all the other issues. In a financial context, underlying is used more narrowly as a way of indicating what came first or what has precedence, such as in things like mortgages or insurance claims.Example: We are still working to determine the underlying cause of the collapse.