under·lyingAWBrE/ˌʌndəˈlaɪɪŋ/NAmE/ˌʌndərˈlaɪɪŋ/adjective[only before noun]importantinasituationbutnotalwayseasilynoticedorstatedclearly根本的；潜在的；隐含的◆Theunderlyingassumptionisthattheamountofmoneyavailableislimited. 隐含的假定是可用的资金有限。◆Unemploymentmaybeanunderlyingcauseoftherisingcrimerate. 失业可能是犯罪率攀升的潜在原因。existingunderthesurfaceofsthelse表面下的；下层的◆theunderlyingrockformation地表下的岩石结构➡ see alsounderlie