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Basin
A basin is an open container (usually circle-shaped with
sloping or curving sides) of various sizes for holding or
collecting fluids. There are also basins for holding water
for washing (e.g., hand washing). One is known as a
wash basin and it can be a sink or bowl. There is a
shallow bean-shaped basin often used in medical
settings to contain water runoff when washing out
wounds. This is known as a kidney basin (due to its
kidney-like shape) or an emesis basin because it was
invented as a means to capture vomit (also known as
emesis). However, it does not actually work well to
capture vomit because the size, depth, and structure
cause the vomit to spill or splash over the sloping walls.
A common type of medical
basin.
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The basin above, pictured to the top right is commonly used in hospital settings and in
home settings. It is commonly used to help contain vomit, particularly in young children, to
prevent vomit from getting on the bed or couch.
Basin can also refer to the shape of the pelvis, which resembles a basin. The pelvis is a
massive bone made of hip bones on each side and the front, while the back part is made
the Latin word "bacca" meaning "water vessel."
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