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American
[bask] / bæsk /
noun
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Basques
plural
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one of a people of unknown origin inhabiting the western Pyrenees regions in France and Spain.
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their language, not known to be related to any other language.
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(lowercase) a close-fitting bodice, sometimes having an extension that covers the hips.
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(lowercase) the extension of this bodice or of a doublet.
adjective
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of or relating to the Basques or their language.
Basque 1 British
/ bæsk, bɑːsk /
noun
-
a member of a people of unknown origin living around the W Pyrenees in France and Spain
-
the language of this people, of no known relationship with any other language
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
adjective
-
relating to, denoting, or characteristic of this people or their language
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
basque 2 British
/ bɑːsk, bæsk /
noun
-
a short extension below the waist to the bodice of a woman's jacket, etc
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a tight-fitting bodice for women
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of Basque1
C19: from French, from Latin Vascō a Basque
Origin of basque2
C19: perhaps from Basque
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Basque basque Basques
For the latest work, they focused on people from the Basque region of Spain who spoke between one and four languages, using different combinations of Spanish, Basque, French and English.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 22, 2026
"In the Basque Country, we have a strong sense of collective purpose and culture," he said.
From BBC ● Aug. 2, 2026
And Deschamps, who grew up in modest circumstances in Basque country, is the one who has made all those disparate parts work together.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
Instead, it’s been a 30-year-old Basque without a true position who has played all of nine minutes over La Roja’s past two matches.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026
The Basque wagged a forefinger at him and handed the bottle back, slapping in the cork with the palm of his hand.
From "The Sun Also Rises" by Ernest Hemingway
Skip the baklava and finish with the basque cheesecake.
From Salon ● Oct. 31, 2025
Constructed in cream silk shantung, the veste was sculpted to fit snugly above a narrow waist, then flare into a scalloped basque, which was meticulously padded, stiffened and weighted to accentuate the hipline.
From New York Times ● Nov. 25, 2021
Standing 5ft 9in in her Vivienne Westwood basque tonight, J – born Jessica Cornish – has a voice so expansive it looks likely to annex great swaths of territory this year.
From The Guardian ● Jan. 23, 2011
A week later, Beyoncé wore a basque, flexed a whip, smoked a fag and subverted the cliched ideal of the compliant 1950s housewife in the video for Why Don't You Love Me?.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 21, 2010
The basque was buttoned down the front with black buttons which looked so exactly like juicy big blackberries that Laura wanted to taste them.
From "Little House in the Big Woods" by Laura Ingalls Wilder
A lively and fluent writer, Mr. Kurlansky, the author of books on the Basques, cod, salt and other subjects, brings the Boston milieu to life with sympathy, verve and dry humor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 9, 2025
Both Basques and Geordies have a proud local identity and are immensely passionate about their football clubs.
From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2025
The Basques set their way towards an 18th straight home victory with three first-half tries -- as Capilla grabbed his first before wing Arnaud Erbinartegaray and scrum-half Baptiste Germain also crossed the whitewash.
From Barron's ● Oct. 18, 2025
Yermin Basques, president of Toconao, said he was pushing for the community to receive a greater share of the profits and be a "strategic partner" in the state lithium company.
From Reuters ● Jul. 20, 2023
Finally, after a couple more false klaxons, the bus started, and Robert Cohn waved good-by to us, and all the Basques waved good-by to him.
From "The Sun Also Rises" by Ernest Hemingway
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.