basin
NounOpen English WordNet
Noun (5)basins
- a bowl-shaped vessel; usually used for holding food or liquids“she mixed the dough in a large basin”Type of vesselKinds birdbath, emesis basin, washbasin, laver, baptismal font, bidet, aspersorium, stoup
- the quantity that a basin will hold“a basinful of water”Synonyms: basinfulType of containerful
- a natural depression in the surface of the land often with a lake at the bottom of it“the basin of the Great Salt Lake”Type of natural depression, depressionKinds tidal basin, saltpan, cirque
- the entire geographical area drained by a river and its tributaries; an area characterized by all runoff being conveyed to the same outlet“flood control in the Missouri basin”Synonyms: river basinwatersheddrainage basincatchment areacatchment basindrainage areaType of geographical area, geographic areaKinds detention basin, retention basin
- a bathroom sink that is permanently installed and connected to a water supply and drainpipe; where you can wash your hands and face“he ran some water in the basin and splashed it on his face”Synonyms: washbasinwashbowlwashstandlavatoryType of sink
What does it mean? Question 1 of today’s quiz
Translations
Noun wide bowl for washing
- Spanish
- palangana
- French
- lavabo
- German
- Waschbecken
- Italian
- catino
- Portuguese
- pia
- Turkish
- leğen
- Russian
- таз taz
- Chinese
- 脸盆 liǎnpén
- Japanese
- 洗面器 senmenki
- Dutch
- bassin
19 more languages
Noun drainage basin, river basin
- Spanish
- cuenca
- French
- bassin
- German
- Einzugsgebiet
- Italian
- bacino
- Portuguese
- bacia
- Turkish
- havza
- Russian
- бассе́йн basséjn
- Arabic
- حوض ḥawḍ
- Chinese
- 流域 liúyù
- Japanese
- 流域 ryūiki
15 more languages
- Dutch
- stroomgebied
- Polish
- basen
- Greek
- λεκάνη απορροής lekáni aporroḯs
- Korean
- 유역 yuyeok
- Vietnamese
- lưu vực
- Portuguese (PT)
- bacia
- Chinese (Trad.)
- 流域 liúyù
- Catalan
- conca
- Czech
- povodí
- Danish
- afvandingsområde
- Esperanto
- baseno
- Finnish
- valuma-alue
- Hebrew
- אַגָּן agán
- Norwegian
- nedbørfelt
- Scottish Gaelic
- amar
The main translation for each meaning, from the langtolang.com multilingual dictionary. Each word links to its full entry there.
Webster's Dictionary (1913)
Origin: OF. bacin, F. bassin, LL. bacchinus, fr. bacca a water vessel, fr. L. bacca berry, in allusion to the round shape; or perh. fr. Celtic. Cf. Bac.
1. A hollow vessel or dish, to hold water for washing, and for various other uses.
2. The quantity contained in a basin.
3. A hollow vessel, of various forms and materials, used in the arts or manufactures, as that used by glass grinders for forming concave glasses, by hatters for molding a hat into shape, etc.
4. A hollow place containing water, as a pond, a dock for ships, a little bay. Alexander Pope
5. Physical Geog. (a) A circular or oval valley, or depression of the surface of the ground, the lowest part of which is generally occupied by a lake, or traversed by a river. (b) The entire tract of country drained by a river, or sloping towards a sea or lake.
6. Geology An isolated or circumscribed formation, particularly where the strata dip inward, on all sides, toward a center; — especially applied to the coal formations, called coal basins or coal fields.
Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54