Basement Meaning
/ˈbeɪsmənt/Definition, CEFR level A2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA floor of a building below ground level.
nounA floor of a building below ground level., Ellipsis of semi-basement, a floor mostly below grade
Sentence Examples
The burglar locked the couple in the basement.
The laundry room is in the basement.
Kitchen goods are sold in the basement.
CEFR Practice Quiz
During the tornado, the family hid in the ____ beneath the house.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
He stores all his old tools and his big workspace in the ____ today.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree English base Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥ Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥tom Proto-Italic *-mentom Latin -mentum Old French -mentbor. Middle English -ment English -ment English basement From base + -ment.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Turning back, then, toward the basement staircase, she began to grope her way through blinding darkness, but had taken only a few uncertain steps when, of a sudden, she stopped short and for a little stood like a stricken thing, quite motionless save that she quaked to her very marrow in the grasp of a great and enervating fear."
— 1914 November, Louis Joseph Vance, “An Outsider […]”, in Munsey’s Magazine, volume LIII, number II, New York, N.Y.: The Frank A[ndrew] Munsey Company, […], published 1915, →OCLC, chapter III (Accessory After the Fact), page 382, column 1:
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CEFR Practice Quiz
During the tornado, the family hid in the ____ beneath the house.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
He stores all his old tools and his big workspace in the ____ today.