recipe
Americannoun
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a set of instructions for making or preparing something, especially a food dish.
a recipe for a cake.
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a medical prescription.
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a method to attain a desired end.
a recipe for success.
noun
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a list of ingredients and directions for making something, esp a food preparation
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med (formerly) a medical prescription
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a method for achieving some desired objective
a recipe for success
Etymology
Origin of recipe
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin: take, imperative singular of recipere to receive
Explanation
A recipe is directions for making a dish or dessert, like your mother's award-winning recipe for chocolate chip cookies. The word recipe is most often used when talking about cooking. It includes two things: a list of ingredients that you'll need and the steps to take in order to make it. You can find recipes in cookbooks, on Web sites, in newspapers and magazines — or handed down in your family. Other than cooking, a recipe can also be a formula: the recipe for success is hard work, good timing and a little luck.
Vocabulary lists containing recipe
Words to Know Before You Defrost the Bird
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Passover Vocabulary
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List 7
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
To find out, I asked Marcia Mantell, author of “Creating Your Medicare Recipe: Your guide to enrolling on time and without penalties,” for her thoughts.
From MarketWatch • Nov. 26, 2025
"Recipe development in today's world is enveloped in inspiration from other cooks, cookbook authors, food bloggers and content creators," she said, adding that the "willingness to share receipes" is what she loves about baking.
From BBC • Apr. 30, 2025
Moments later, White is making her way down the hot pink Glow Recipe aisle in an oversize Lilo & Stitch T-shirt and sparkly green eyeliner, ticking off her favorite products in rapid succession.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 10, 2024
My spouse took to making Detroit-adjacent pan pizza, customizing a mash-up of recipes from King Arthur Baking’s 2020 Recipe of the Year and Cook’s Illustrated January/February 2020 issue.
From Seattle Times • Oct. 24, 2023
“It’s like you’re at KFC and you’re ordering some Original Recipe dark meat plus a taco for your sister, Louise. Or maybe you know the guy behind the counter and his name is Lou.”
From "Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics" by Chris Grabenstein
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
