basal

C1 · Advanced Medicine Technical

adj. the lowest level of energy or activity needed to keep a living thing alive.

adj. relating to the minimum level of energy or physiological activity required to maintain the life of an organism at rest.

“Your basal metabolic rate is the number of calories your body burns just to stay alive.”

“The patient's basal insulin levels remained stable throughout the night, indicating that the long-acting dosage was correctly calibrated.”

C2 · Proficiency Science Technical · Academic

adj. describing a group of living things that branched off very early in their history.

adj. denoting a lineage or taxon that diverged earlier than other groups in a phylogenetic tree.

“Sponges are considered a basal group in the animal kingdom.”

“The discovery of this fossil suggests that the species occupies a more basal position in the hominid lineage than previously assumed.”

C2 · Proficiency Countable noun Science Technical

n. a part or structure that forms the base of something.

n. any biological or physical structure that serves as a base or foundation.

“The basal of the leaf was wider than the tip.”

“Microscopic analysis revealed that the basal was composed of a different cellular matrix than the rest of the specimen.”