grill

¹ American  

[gril] / grɪl /

noun

1. a grated utensil for broiling meat, fish, vegetables, etc., over a fire; gridiron.

2. a dish of grilled meat, fish, etc.

3. grillroom.

4. Philately. a group of small pyramidal marks, embossed or impressed in parallel rows on certain U.S. and Peruvian stamps of the late 19th century to prevent erasure of cancellation marks.

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verb (used with object)

1. to broil on a gridiron or other apparatus over or before a fire.

   Synonyms:

   barbecue

2. to subject to severe and persistent cross-examination or questioning.

   Synonyms:

   probe, interrogate

3. to torment with heat.

   Synonyms:

   torture

4. to mark with a series of parallel bars like those of a grill.

verb (used without object)

1. to undergo broiling.

grill ² American  

[gril] / grɪl /

noun

1. grille.

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grill ¹ British  

/ ɡrɪl /

verb

1. Usual US and Canadian word: broil.  to cook (meat, fish, etc) by direct heat, as under a grill or over a hot fire, or (of meat, fish, etc) to be cooked in this way

2. (tr; usually passive) to torment with or as if with extreme heat

   the travellers were grilled by the scorching sun

3. informal (tr) to subject to insistent or prolonged questioning

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noun

1. a device with parallel bars of thin metal on which meat, fish, etc, may be cooked by a fire; gridiron

2. a device on a cooker that radiates heat downwards for grilling meat, fish, etc

3. food cooked by grilling

4. See grillroom

grill ² British  

/ ɡrɪl /

noun

1. a variant spelling of grille

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Other Word Forms

• griller noun

Etymology

Origin of grill

1660–70; 1890–95 grill ¹ for def. 6; < French gril gridiron ≪ Latin crātīculum, creātīculō, diminutive of crātis wickerwork, hurdle. See grille

Example Sentences

The dry-aged grilled branzino was flaky and beautifully cooked, but the standout was the chicken al pastor, served with a fresh pineapple salad and pineapple butter—bright, savory, and just a little indulgent.

From Salon

In his public job interview, Curtis promised to grill local elections staffers to “find out what they know.”

From Los Angeles Times

The fridge lies empty, the electric stove is not working, and the only available cooking method is a small charcoal grill her husband built.

From BBC

Live Nation Chief Executive Michael Rapino was grilled Thursday at the concert promoter’s monopolization trial, as he sought to defend the company’s ticket fees and past boasts about its dominant market share and profitability.

From The Wall Street Journal

Once he came back with a fishing rod, and after that we quite often had grilled fish for our breakfast.

From Literature

Related Words

• barbecue
• roast
• sear