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Definition of "underlying" []

  • Lying under or beneath something: underlying strata. (adjective)
  • Basic; fundamental. (adjective)
  • Present but not obvious; implicit: an underlying meaning. (adjective)
  • Taking precedence; prior: an underlying financial claim. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "underlying" in a sentence
  • "The Company uses the term "underlying" when referring to non-GAAP sales information, which excludes discontinued and acquired products and foreign exchange fluctuations, and "excluding special items" to also exclude gains and losses from special items such as significant investments, litigation, and business development transactions."
  • "The Company uses the term "underlying" when referring to non-GAAP sales information, which excludes discontinued and newly acquired products and foreign exchange fluctuations, and "excluding special items" to also exclude gains and losses from special items such as significant investments, litigation, and business development transactions."
  • "In letters to U.S. lawmakers, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said the administration wants the officials in Scotland and Britain to review what she called the underlying facts and circumstances leading to the release of Abdel Baset al-Megrahi."