(political party's) voter base / (musician's) fan base / (a business's) customer base / the funds necessary for a venture / foundation on which sth's existence depends / bedrock (in the figurative sense)
(allusion to Tao Qian 陶潛|陶潜[Tao2 Qian2], who used this phrase when he resigned from government service rather than show subservience to a visiting inspector) to bow and scrape for five pecks of rice (that being a part of his salary as a local magistrate) / (fig.) to compromise one's principles for the sake of a salary
bridgehead (military) / stronghold serving as a base for advancing further into enemy territory / bridge tower (ornamental structure at either end of a bridge) / (fig.) gateway (place that provides access to other places beyond it) / bridgehead (key location serving as a base for further expansion)
bottom / base / background / foundation / copy (of a manuscript or receipt etc) kept as a record / (suffix) end of a year or month / (math.) radix / base (abbr. for 底數|底数[di3shu4])
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