Etymologically
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baseline

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 24 October 2026 at 18:41. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • /ˈbeɪslaɪn/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English base + line,[2][3][4][5] and is also written with a hyphen.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

A line that forms or represents a base, or one used as a basis for measurement or for fixing positions: ?1556, in Digges's Tectonicon,[2] about 1556 in Merriam-Webster.[4] Etymonline dates it to 1750, originally in surveying,[3] and Dictionary.com to 1740–50.[5]

Semantic evolution

The literal sense was applied in perspective drawing to the line where the perspective plane meets the ground plane (1724),[2][4] in the army to the first troop formation in a column and later, chiefly in the United States, to the line of places on which an army depends for supplies (1802),[2] and in gunnery to a line on a cannon (1862–75).[2] In sport it named the line between the bases of a baseball diamond (1867)[2][3] and the line at each end of a tennis court and later of other courts (1875; 1872 in Etymonline).[2][3] In handwriting and type it is the line on which the body of the lowercase letters rests (1870).[2] The figurative sense, a minimum or starting point for comparison, appears as early as 1836,[2] and Merriam-Webster has the related scientific senses of a known quantity used as a control and an initial set of data used for comparison;[4] baseline estimate was in use by 1983.[3] In computing a baseline is also a fixed configuration of software or hardware.[1]

Timeline

  • ?1556 – a line forming a base or a basis for measurement.[2][4]
  • 1724 – in perspective drawing.[2]
  • 1750 – in surveying, according to Etymonline.[3]
  • 1802 – military senses.[2]
  • 1836 – a minimum or starting point for comparison.[2]
  • 1867 – the line between bases in baseball.[2][3]
  • 1870 – the line on which letters rest.[2]
  • 1875 – the end line of a tennis court.[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A line used as a base for measurement or construction, as in surveying.
  2. A starting point or minimum against which later results or changes are measured: The 2010 figures serve as a baseline for the survey.
  3. An initial set of observations or data used for comparison, or as a control in an experiment.
  4. The line at each end of the court in tennis, basketball and some other games.
  5. (baseball) The line from base to base, within which a runner must keep.
  6. The line on which the main body of lowercase letters rests in writing or typography.

Verb

  1. To provide a baseline for measurement.

Word family

  • baseliner

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House