chords playing

[pippin]

I have returned to playing upright bass after a 45 year period of playing little except a uke for the past several years.
I can play multi note chords on a uke ( 3 or 4 notes at the same time) by learned finger positions but am hard pressed due to the spread of the location of the notes on the fingerboard to figure out how I play a multi-note chord on the bass. I have large hands so I'm fairly sure that's not the problem.
Or when I see a referrence in Bass literature or notation of chords on music for basses, is that referring to bass guitar playing and /or piano? Or am I supposed to play the individual notes of the chord as rapidly as I can?
Am I missing something?

[Don Higdon]

Relax, Pip
You're allowed to play one note at a time. You pick which note. The chord symbol simply sets harmonic parameters for your selection.

[Comrade Lewis]

Pippin,
It all depends on the context of the notes. In classical solo repetoire if you see a chord, then you must find the best way to play all of those notes together (if more than a double stop it must be rolled with the bow). Usually in orchestra settings you must divide chordal parts, but occasionally you see non-divisi. If your playing jazz then you almost always play one note at a time from the chord your playing, or scale and key which you are playing in. Make sense?

[ToR-Tu-Ra]

It'd be great to see someone strumming chords on a Bullfiddle. Some workout huh?