Ba"sin (&?;), n. [OF. bacin, F. bassin, LL.
bacchinus, fr. bacca a water vessel, fr. L. bacca berry, in allusion to the round
shape; or perh. fr. Celtic. Cf. Bac.]
1. A hollow vessel or dish, to hold water for washing, and for various other uses.
2. The quantity contained in a basin.
3. A hollow vessel, of various forms and materials, used in the arts or manufactures, as that used by
glass grinders for forming concave glasses, by hatters for molding a hat
into shape, etc.
4. A hollow place containing water, as a pond, a dock for ships, a little bay. Pope
5. (Physical Geog.) (a) A circular or oval valley, or depression of the surface of the ground, the lowest part of which is generally occupied by a lake, or
traversed by a river. (b)
The entire tract of country drained by a river, or sloping towards a sea or lake.
6. (Geol.)
An isolated or circumscribed formation, particularly where the strata dip inward, on all sides, toward a center; -- especially
applied to the coal formations, called coal
basins or coal
fields.
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