What’s the difference between bass and base?

This week we are looking at two words which are sometimes confused: bass and base.

bass

A bass saxophone, guitar, or other musical instrument is one that has a lower range of notes than other instruments of its kind.

The vocalist had been joined by the lead and bass guitars.

A bass is also a male singer who can sing very low notes.

…the great Russian bass Chaliapin.

bass

A bass is an edible fish that is found in rivers and the sea. There are several types of bass.

They unloaded their catch of cod and bass.

base

The base of something is its lowest edge or part.

…the switch on the lamp base.

I had back pain at the base of my spine.

There are many other meanings of base as a noun and a verb – look at the dictionary entry to find out more!

Find out more in our English Usage article.

This blogpost is based on Collins COBUILD English Usage, written for learners of English. For more examples of English usage points, please visit:  https://grammar.collinsdictionary.com/english-usage.

All opinions expressed on this blog are those of the individual writers, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions or policies of Collins, or its parent company, HarperCollins.

Related Articles

Other Articles

Mass Nouns

Mass nouns are nouns that refer to a substance that can be divided or measured but not counted, e.g. sugar, water. They do not usually have an indefinite article in front. Meat is usually more expensive than cheese. Sugar is quite cheap. Mass nouns only take a plural in special cases, for example, when they refer… Read More

How to use ‘Used to’

The verb used to is a ‘marginal’ modal verb. Unlike the other modal verbs, it is only found in the past tense. Therefore, when it is used with do to make negatives and questions, the form of the auxiliary verb is always did.  Used to is used as follows:  to describe an activity or a state that… Read More

Use of Shall and Will

The normal way to express simple future time in English is using the modal verb will followed by the base form of a main verb. The modal verb shall can be used with the pronouns I and we, especially in questions, but is not used very much in modern English. Shall I bring you some tea?… Read More