bake

American  

[beyk] / beɪk /

verb (used with object)

baked, baking

1. to cook by dry heat in an oven or on heated metal or stones.

2. to harden by heat.

   to bake pottery in a kiln.

3. to dry by, or subject to heat.

   The sun baked the land.

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verb (used without object)

baked, baking

1. to bake bread, a casserole, etc.

2. to become baked.

   The cake will bake in about half an hour.

3. to be subjected to heat.

   The lizard baked on the hot rocks.

noun

1. a social occasion at which the chief food is baked.

2. Scot. cracker.

verb phrase

1. bake in / into

   1. Computers. to incorporate (a feature) as part of a system or piece of software or hardware while it is still in development.

      The location-tracking service is baked in the new app.

      Security features come baked into the operating system.

   2. to include as an inseparable or permanent part.

      Baked into the price of the product is the cost of advertising.

bake British  

/ beɪk /

verb

1. (tr) to cook by dry heat in or as if in an oven

2. (intr) to cook bread, pastry, etc, in an oven

3. to make or become hardened by heat

4. informal (intr) to be extremely hot, as in the heat of the sun

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noun

1. a party at which the main dish is baked

2. a batch of things baked at one time

3. a kind of biscuit

4. a small flat fried cake

Other Word Forms

• outbake
  verb (used with object)
• overbake
  verb
• prebake
  verb
• rebake
  verb (used with object)
• unbaked
  adjective
• underbake
  verb (used with object)
• well-baked
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of bake

First recorded before 1000; Middle English baken, Old English bacan; cognate with Old High German bahhan, Old Norse baka; akin to Dutch bakken, German backen, Greek phṓgein “to roast”; from Proto-Indo-European extended root bhēg-, bhōg- “to warm, roast”

Explanation

To bake something is to cook it in a hot oven. When you bake a batch of blueberry muffins, your whole house smells delicious. Whether you bake some cookies for dessert, a casserole to take to a potluck supper, or bake a clay pot in a kiln, you cook with a relatively slow, dry heat. You can also use the word bake figuratively: "Are you going to move into the shade, or are you just going to bake in the sun all day?" The Old English word was bacan, from a Germanic root.

Example Sentences

Bake Off star Paul Hollywood was pulled over by police after speeding at nearly 100mph while rushing his sick cat to the vet, a court heard.

From BBC • May 7, 2026

He had already filmed The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up To Cancer, but Channel 4 said it had "carefully considered the circumstances" and "taken the decision not to air" the episode featuring him.

From BBC • Apr. 8, 2026

Bake this beautiful concoction and sprinkle flaky salt and grated lemon zest on top before serving with pasta or over slices of fresh sourdough.

From Salon • Apr. 6, 2026

Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about an hour, making sure to inspect and flip the crackers around the 30-minute mark.

From Salon • Mar. 31, 2026

“Of course. She won the Kids Bake Challenge!”

From "From the Desk of Zoe Washington" by Janae Marks

Related Words

• heat
• melt
• simmer
• stew
• warm