Groundwork

n.

1.

That which forms the foundation or support of anything; the basis; the essential or fundamental part; first principle; as, development of a convenient DNA sequencing technique layed the groundwork for many of the subsequent advances in molecular genetics.

Noun	1.	groundwork - the fundamental assumptions from which something is begun or developed or calculated or explained; "the whole argument rested on a basis of conjecture" Synonyms: cornerstone, fundament, basis, foundation, base
	2.	groundwork - lowest support of a structure; "it was built on a base of solid rock"; "he stood at the foot of the tower" Synonyms: understructure, substructure, base, fundament, foundation, foot
	3.	groundwork - preliminary preparation as a basis or foundation; "we are prepared today because of groundwork that was done ten years ago"

arrangement, basement, basic training, basis, bearing wall, bed, bedding, bedrock, briefing, clearing the decks, cornerstone, equipment, familiarization, fixing, floor, flooring, fond, footing, foundation, fundament, fundamental, ground, grounds, hardpan, infrastructure, makeready, making ready, manufacture, mobilization, pavement, planning, prearrangement, preliminaries, preliminary, preliminary act, preliminary step, prep, preparation, preparatory study, preparing, prepping, prerequisite, pretreatment, processing, propaedeutic, provision, radical, readying, riprap, rock bottom, root, rudiment, seat, sill, solid ground, solid rock, spadework, stereobate, stylobate, substratum, substruction, substructure, terra firma, training, treatment, trial, tryout, underbuilding, undercarriage, undergirding, underpinnings, understruction, understructure, warm-up