It's something you exchange on Forex market.
The base currency is the reference element for the exchange rate of the currency pair. It always has a value of one.
The second listed currency on the right is called the counter or quote currency (in this example, the U.S. dollar).
When buying, the exchange rate tells you how much you have to pay in units of the quote currency to buy ONE unit of the base currency.
Status:: #wiki/notes/mature
Plantations:: Forex
References:: Babypips