Showing results for "underpinning"

• present participle of underpin.

underpinning

American  

[uhn-der-pin-ing] / ˈʌn dərˌpɪn ɪŋ /

noun

• underpinnings
  plural

1. a system of supports beneath a wall or the like.

2. Often underpinnings. a foundation or basis.

   to uncover the emotional underpinnings of an illness.

3. Informal. underpinnings,

   1. underwear, especially women's underwear.

   2. the legs.

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underpinning British  

/ ˈʌndəˌpɪnɪŋ /

noun

1. a structure of masonry, concrete, etc, placed beneath a wall to provide support

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• underpinnings
  plural

Etymology

Origin of underpinning

First recorded in 1480–90; under + pin + -ing ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

underpinning underpinnings

The basic logic underpinning his thinking is that the more people who own and use bitcoin, the greater the adoption of its network, which can provide a base for assessing its value.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 28, 2026

Yet, the technology underpinning autonomous warfare risks outpacing the Russian and Ukrainian frameworks for maintaining some degree of human control over weapons.

From Salon ● Sep. 24, 2026

The AI product space is increasingly competitive, underpinning demand for computing power and AI infrastructure, the strategists add.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026

This sets up Shopify to benefit from “the infrastructure layer underpinning AI-driven commerce rather than being at risk of displacement.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

In the recognition by Pythagoras and Plato that the Cosmos is knowable, that there is a mathematical underpinning to nature, they greatly advanced the cause of science.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

Escher is also the first to ever explore the mathematical underpinnings of his mind-bending scenes, looking at the numerical, geometric and computational concepts that lie at the heart of his most iconic images.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026

Warsh hasn’t given the intellectual underpinnings for his “swerve” away from how Fed chairs over the past two decades have communicated, Tetlow noted.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 27, 2026

His association with Rand was seldom highlighted during his Fed tenure, but even a casual reading of those essays exposes the Randian underpinnings — and the Randian self-contradictions — of his Fed policies.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 25, 2026

He charms the staff with his knowledge of these obscure machines – pointing out the bellows that power a church organ, and the pneumatic underpinnings of a piano roll player.

From BBC ● May 14, 2026

Both were thoroughgoing materialists, not in prizing possessions but in holding that matter alone provided the underpinnings of the world.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan