Meaning

adjective especially of leaves; located at the base of a plant or stem; especially arising directly from the root or rootstock or a root-like stem

adjective serving as or forming a base

adjective of primary importance

originEtymology tree English base Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālisbor. Old French -albor. ▲ Latin -ālis Old French -elbor. ▲ Latin -ālisbor. Middle English -al English -al English basal From base + -al.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0