basement

basement

1. 

a. a partly or wholly underground storey of a building, esp the one immediately below the main floor

b. (as modifier): a basement flat

2. the foundation or substructure of a wall or building

3. Geology a part of the earth's crust formed of hard igneous or metamorphic rock that lies beneath the cover of soft sedimentary rock, sediment, and soil

Collins Discovery Encyclopedia, 1st edition © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

Basement

Usually the lowest story of a building, either partly or entirely below grade.

Illustrated Dictionary of Architecture Copyright © 2012, 2002, 1998 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Basement

 

in geology, a complex of relatively more ancient, usually strongly folded, regionally metamorphosed, and granitized rocks that constitute the lower structural stage of a craton or constitute a roughly equivalent formation in a geosynclinal region or ocean.

A basement is a formation of the precratonic, or geosynclinal, stage of development of the earth’s crust. The basement of an ancient craton is often called a crystalline basement because it is composed predominantly of Precambrian schists, gneisses, and granites. The basement of a young craton is called a folded basement because, unlike the cratonic mantle, it consists of strongly folded rocks. In the Baikalian and Phanerozoic folded geosynclinal regions, the basal complex, which underlies the main geosynclinal complex, corresponds to the basement of an ancient craton. The main geosynclinal complex is associated with the primary stage of development of the particular geosynclinal system, a stage that preceded the principal folding and orogeny.

In a geophysical sense, a basement corresponds to the consolidated part of the earth’s crust, and the surface of the basement coincides with the surface of the granitic layer on the continents and with the upper margin of magnetically active bodies. The surface of a basement is an important refracting surface for seismic compressional waves, or P waves, with boundary velocities of 5.5–6.4 km/sec.

In the oceans, an acoustic basement, which underlies the crustal sediment, is distinguished. Reflected seismic waves are not detected beneath the surface of the acoustic basement. The upper part of the acoustic basement corresponds to the second layer of the oceanic crust, a layer composed of thick basalts and intercalated sediments.

V. E. KHAIN

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

What does it mean when you dream about a basement?

Unless one’s dream flows directly out of associations with an actual basement, the connotations of an underground room are obvious enough, which is that a basement represents the unconsciousness. (Freudians view basements as symbols of sexual energy.) Being afraid of going into a basement in a dream, for example, often symbolizes fear of the unknown or fear of repressed aspects of oneself. And being locked in the basement can indicate feeling immobilized by the power of the unconscious.

The Dream Encyclopedia, Second Edition © 2009 Visible Ink Press®. All rights reserved.

basement

[′bās·mənt]

(building construction)

A building story which is wholly or less than half below ground; it is generally used for living space.

(geology)

A complex, usually of igneous and metamorphic rocks, that is overlain unconformably by sedimentary strata. Also known as basement rock.

A crustal layer beneath a sedimentary one and above the Mohorovičić discontinuity.

The ancient continental igneous rock base that lies beneath Precambrian rocks. Also known as basal complex; basement complex.

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

basement

1. Usually the lowest story of a building, either partly or entirely below grade. Also see cellar, American basement.

2. The lower part of the wall or walls of any building.

3. The substructure of a column or arch. Frequently, the applicable building code specifies that only one floor level shall be classified as a basement. Also see American basement, English basement, French basement, raised basement, walk-out basement.

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Architecture and Construction. Copyright © 2003 by McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Basement

(dreams)

The house generally represents your psychological and emotional self. Each part of the house may deal with a different part of you. The basement is built first. It is often below ground (or at least some parts of it), and is essentially the foundation of the house. Dreaming about a basement and understanding the dream may provide you with valuable information that may lead to greater self-awareness. A recurring dream about basements (i. e., being in a basement, cleaning a basement, furnishing a basement, etc.) should not be ignored. These dreams may be symbolic of your unconscious, instincts and intuition, and degree of awareness of a current situation or a problem. The look of the basement may provide you with clues about your current feelings and state of contentment. If the basement is a mess, and you see great disorder and clutter, it suggests that you may be experiencing confusion and that it is a very good time to “sort” things out emotionally and psychologically. At times, the activities in the dream basement may be based on past experiences or childhood memories. As with all dreams, their main purpose seems to be to bring the dreamer to higher consciousness so that he may deal with his current issues more effectively, rather than dwell on the past.

Bedside Dream Dictionary by Silvana Amar Copyright © 2007 by Skyhorse Publishing, Inc.