Plural of bass, referring to either low-pitched voices or instruments in music, or to types of fish in biology.
From Middle English and Old French, either from 'bas' (low) for the musical term, or from Old English origins for the fish. The two meanings evolved separately despite similar pronunciation.
Bass voices in choirs are in short supply because the lowest voices are rarest in human populations—which is why barbershop quartets always needed to hunt hard for a good bass singer.
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