Spelling.School · How to spell

How to spell basis

hear itba·sis/'beɪsɪs/nounSilent and tricky

What it means: The main part or foundation of something.

In a sentence: The basis of a good story is having fun characters.

The part people get wrong

Often misspelled as baisis or bases.

Same family: base, basic, basics, basically, based. If you can spell one, the shared part carries to the others.

Where it comes from: “Basis” comes from a Greek word meaning “step” or “foundation.” Over time, it came to mean the underlying support or main idea that something is built on.

Try spelling it

You will hear the word and a sentence. Type it and press Enter. Then four more words from the same level, so you know where you stand.

Words like this

Spelling.School is a spaced-repetition spelling practice: ten minutes a day, every word spoken aloud, every miss explained, and every word coming back just before you would forget it. Try five words without signing up.