basic

¹ American  

[bey-sik] / ˈbeɪ sɪk /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or forming a base; fundamental.

   a basic principle; the basic ingredient.

   Synonyms:

   underlying, basal, primary, key, essential, elementary

2. Chemistry.

   1. pertaining to, of the nature of, or containing a base.

   2. not having all of the hydroxyls of the base replaced by the acid group, or having the metal or its equivalent united partly to the acid group and partly to oxygen.

   3. alkaline.

3. Metallurgy. noting, pertaining to, or made by a steelmaking process basic process in which the furnace or converter is lined with a basic or nonsiliceous material, mainly burned magnesite and a small amount of ground basic slag, to remove impurities from the steel.

4. Geology. (of a rock) having relatively little silica.

5. Military.

   1. primary.

      basic training.

   2. of lowest rank.

      airman basic.

6. Slang.

   1. (especially of a female) characterized by predictable or unoriginal style, interests, or behavior.

      those basic girls who follow trends.

   2. (of things) boringly predictable or unoriginal.

      His lyrics are just so basic.

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noun

1. Military.

   1. basic training.

   2. a soldier or airman receiving basic training.

2. Often basics. something that is fundamental or basic; an essential ingredient, principle, procedure, etc..

   to learn the basics of music; to get back to basics.

3. Slang. a person, especially a female, who is boringly predictable or unoriginal.

BASIC ² American  

[bey-sik] / ˈbeɪ sɪk /

noun

Computers.

1. a widely adopted programming language that uses English words, punctuation marks, and algebraic notation to facilitate communication between the operator or lay user and the computer.

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BASIC ¹ British  

/ ˈbeɪsɪk /

noun

1. a computer programming language that uses common English terms

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basic ² British  

/ ˈbeɪsɪk /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or forming a base or basis; fundamental; underlying

2. elementary or simple

   a few basic facts

3. excluding additions or extras

   basic pay

4. chem

   1. of, denoting, or containing a base; alkaline

   2. (of a salt) containing hydroxyl or oxide groups not all of which have been replaced by an acid radical

      basic lead carbonate, 2PbCO3.Pb(OH)2

5. metallurgy of, concerned with, or made by a process in which the furnace or converter is made of a basic material, such as magnesium oxide

6. (of such igneous rocks as basalt) containing between 52 and 45 per cent silica

7. military primary or initial

   basic training

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noun

1. (usually plural) a fundamental principle, fact, etc

BASIC Scientific  

/ bā′sĭk /

1. A simple programming language developed in the 1960s that is widely taught to students as a first programming language.

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Usage

What else does basic mean? In slang, basic characterizes someone or something as unoriginal, unexceptional, and mainstream. A basic girl—or basic b*tch as she is often insulted—is said to like pumpkin spice lattes, UGG boots, and taking lots of selfies, for instance.

Other Word Forms

• nonbasic adjective
• quasi-basic adjective

Etymology

Origin of basic¹

First recorded in 1835–45; base ¹ + -ic

Origin of BASIC²

First recorded in 1965–70; B(eginner's) A(ll-purpose) S(ymbolic) I(nstruction) C(ode)

Explanation

What's basic is what's essential, at the root or base of things. If you've got a basic understanding of differential equations, you can handle simple problems but might get tripped up by more difficult ones. You can also speak of the basics. If your kitchen is outfitted with just the basics, you've got some bowls and pots and pans, but you probably don't have an apple corer or a candy thermometer. If you're hitchhiking across the Gobi Desert, you'll want to have the basics of conversational Mongolian down. You've probably heard basic in chemistry class, too: it's the opposite of acidic. A basic solution has a pH greater than 7 and turns litmus paper blue.

Example Sentences

These boats are often small and cramped, lacking in basic facilities like fresh water and sanitation.

From BBC • Apr. 14, 2026

Short-haul domestic basic economy fares at American were up about 10% for that week, UBS said.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 14, 2026

Across Los Angeles County, interim housing sites are struggling to fulfill a basic mission.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2026

Find insight on gold futures, Astra International and more in the latest Market Talks covering basic materials.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 13, 2026

Living without basic amenities such as electricity had worn him down.

From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French

Related Words

• elemental
• essential
• key
• main
• necessary
• primary
• primitive
• underlying
• vital