underlying

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   Real but not immediately obvious; forming the hidden basis of something.

   The doctor searched for the underlying cause of her illness.

2. 2
   adj

   Basic and fundamental.

   Trust is the underlying principle of any friendship.

3. 3
   adj

   Lying or located beneath something.

   We dug down to the underlying rock.

By surface analysis, underlie + -ing.

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