cast

American  

[kast, kahst] / kæst, kɑst /

verb (used with object)

• casts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• cast,
  past participle,  past
• casting
  present participle

1. to throw or hurl; fling.

   The gambler cast the dice.

2. to throw off or away.

   He cast the advertisement in the wastebasket.

3. to direct (the eye, a glance, etc.), especially in a cursory manner.

   She cast her eyes down the page.

4. to cause to fall upon something or in a certain direction; send forth.

   to cast a soft light;

   to cast a spell;

   to cast doubts.

5. to draw (lots), as in telling fortunes.

6. Angling.

   1. to throw out (a fishing line, net, bait, etc.).

      The fisherman cast his line.

   2. to fish in (a stream, an area, etc.).

      He has often cast this brook.

7. to throw down or bring to the ground.

   She cast herself on the sofa.

8. to part with; lose.

   The horse cast a shoe.

9. to shed or drop (skin, antlers, fruit, etc.).

   The snake cast its skin.

10. (of an animal) to bring forth (young), especially abortively.

11. to send off (a swarm), as bees do.

12. to throw or set aside; discard or reject; dismiss.

    He cast the problem from his mind.

13. to throw forth, as from within; emit or eject; vomit.

14. to throw up (earth, sod, etc.), as with a shovel.

15. to put or place, especially hastily or forcibly.

    to cast someone in prison.

16. to deposit or give (a ballot or vote).

17. to bestow; confer.

    to cast blessings upon someone.

18. to make suitable or accordant; tailor.

    He cast his remarks to fit the occasion.

19. Theater.

    1. to select actors for (a play, motion picture, or the like).

    2. to allot a role to (an actor).

    3. to assign an actor to (a role).

20. to form (an object) by pouring metal, plaster, etc., in a fluid state into a mold and letting it harden.

21. to form (metal, plaster, etc.) into a particular shape by pouring it into a mold in a fluid state and letting it harden.

22. to tap (a blast furnace).

23. to compute or calculate; add, as a column of figures.

24. to compute or calculate (a horoscope) astrologically; forecast.

25. to turn or twist; warp.

26. Nautical. to turn the head of (a vessel), especially away from the wind in getting under way.

27. Fox Hunting. (of a hunter) to lead or direct (hounds) over ground believed to have been recently traveled by a fox.

28. Archaic. to contrive, devise, or plan.

29. Obsolete. to ponder.

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verb (used without object)

• casts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• cast,
  past participle,  past
• casting
  present participle

1. to throw.

2. to receive form in a mold.

3. to calculate or add.

4. to conjecture; forecast.

5. (of hounds) to search an area for scent.

   The setter cast, but found no scent.

6. to warp, as timber.

7. Nautical. (of a vessel) to turn, especially to get the head away from the wind; tack.

8. to select the actors for a play, motion picture, or the like.

9. Obsolete.

   1. to consider.

   2. to plan or scheme.

noun

• casts
  plural

1. act of casting or throwing.

2. that which is thrown.

3. the distance to which a thing may be cast or thrown.

4. Games.

   1. a throw of dice.

   2. the number rolled.

5. Angling.

   1. act of throwing a line or net onto the water.

   2. a spot for casting a fishing line; a fishing place.

6. Theater. the group of performers to whom parts are assigned; players.

7. Hunting. a searching of an area for a scent by hounds.

8. a stroke of fortune; fortune or lot.

9. a ride offered on one's way; lift.

10. the form in which something is made or written; arrangement.

11. Metallurgy.

    1. act of casting or founding.

    2. the quantity of metal cast at one time.

12. something formed from a material poured into a mold in a molten or liquid state; casting.

13. an impression or mold made from something.

14. Medicine/Medical. a rigid surgical dressing, usually made of bandage treated with plaster of Paris.

15. outward form; shape; appearance.

16. (of people) distinctive sort, type, or character; mold; stamp.

    The bars were teeming with twenty-somethings of the trust-fund hipster cast. He modeled himself after the cast of his piano teacher, who was an exemplar of self-discipline.

17. tendency; inclination.

18. a permanent twist or turn.

    to have a cast in one's eye.

19. a warp.

20. a slight tinge of some color; hue; shade.

    A good diamond does not have a yellowish cast.

21. a dash or trace; a small amount.

22. Mathematics. computation; calculation; addition.

23. a prediction; forecast.

24. Zoology. something that is shed, ejected, or cast off or out, as molted skin, a feather, food from a bird's crop, or the coil of sand and waste passed by certain earthworms.

25. Ornithology. pellet.

26. Falconry. a pair of hawks put in flight together.

27. Pathology. effused plastic matter produced in the hollow parts of various diseased organs.

28. low-grade, irregular wool.

adjective

1. (of an animal, especially a horse) lying in such a position that it is unable to return to its feet without assistance.

verb phrase

1. cast up

   1. to add up; compute.

   2. to vomit; eject.

   3. Chiefly Scot. to turn up; appear.

2. cast about

   1. to look, as to find something; search; seek.

      We cast about for something to do during the approaching summer vacation.

   2. to scheme; plan.

      He cast about how he could avoid work.

3. cast back to refer to something past; revert to.

   The composer casts back to his earlier work.

4. cast off. see castoff.

5. cast away

   1. Also cast aside. to reject; discard.

   2. to shipwreck.

   3. to throw away; squander.

      He will cast away this money just as he has done in the past.

6. cast on to set (yarn) on a needle in order to form the initial stitches in knitting.

7. cast down to lower; humble.

8. cast out to force out; expel; eject.

idioms

1. at a single cast, through a single action or event.

   He bankrupted himself at a single cast.

cast British  

/ kɑːst /

verb

1. to throw or expel with violence or force

2. to throw off or away

   she cast her clothes to the ground

3. to reject or dismiss

   he cast the idea from his mind

4. to shed or drop

   the snake cast its skin

   the horse cast a shoe

   the ship cast anchor

5. (of a sheep) to have fallen and been unable to rise

6. to cause to appear

   to cast a shadow

7. to express (doubts, suspicions, etc) or cause (them) to be felt

8. to direct (a glance, attention, etc)

   cast your eye over this

9. to place, esp in a violent manner

   he was cast into prison

10. (also intr) angling to throw (a line) into the water

11. to draw or choose (lots)

12. to give or deposit (a vote)

13. to select (actors) to play parts in (a play, film, etc)

14. 1. to shape (molten metal, glass, etc) by pouring or pressing it into a mould

    2. to make (an object) by such a process

15. to compute (figures or a total)

16. to predict

    the old woman cast my fortune

17. astrology to draw on (a horoscope) details concerning the positions of the planets in the signs of the zodiac at a particular time for interpretation in terms of human characteristics, behaviour,

18. to contrive (esp in the phrase cast a spell )

19. to formulate

    he cast his work in the form of a chart

20. (also intr) to twist or cause to twist

21. (also intr) nautical to turn the head of (a sailing vessel) or (of a sailing vessel) to be turned away from the wind in getting under way

22. hunting to direct (a pack of hounds) over (ground) where their quarry may recently have passed

23. (intr) (of birds of prey) to eject from the crop and bill a pellet consisting of the indigestible parts of birds or animals previously eaten

24. falconry to hold the body of a hawk between the hands so as to perform some operation upon it

25. printing to stereotype or electrotype

26. to share in the activities or fortunes of (someone else)

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noun

1. the act of casting or throwing

2. 1. Also called: casting. something that is shed, dropped, or egested, such as the coil of earth left by an earthworm

   2. another name for pellet

3. an object that is thrown

4. the distance an object is or may be thrown

5. 1. a throw at dice

   2. the resulting number shown

6. angling

   1. a trace with a fly or flies attached

   2. the act or an instance of casting

7. the wide sweep made by a sheepdog to get behind a flock of sheep or by a hunting dog in search of a scent

8. 1. the actors in a play collectively

   2. ( as modifier )

      a cast list

9. 1. an object made of metal, glass, etc, that has been shaped in a molten state by being poured or pressed into a mould

   2. the mould used to shape such an object

10. form or appearance

11. sort, kind, or style

12. a fixed twist or defect, esp in the eye

13. a distortion of shape

14. surgery a rigid encircling casing, often made of plaster of Paris, for immobilizing broken bones while they heal

15. pathol a mass of fatty, waxy, cellular, or other material formed in a diseased body cavity, passage, etc

16. the act of casting a pack of hounds

17. falconry a pair of falcons working in combination to pursue the same quarry

18. archery the speed imparted to an arrow by a particular bow

19. a slight tinge or trace, as of colour

20. a computation or calculation

21. a forecast or conjecture

22. fortune or a stroke of fate

23. palaeontol a replica of an organic object made of nonorganic material, esp a lump of sediment that indicates the internal or external surface of a shell or skeleton

24. palaeontol a sedimentary structure representing the infilling of a mark or depression in a soft layer of sediment (or bed)

cast More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing cast

• die is cast

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Synonym Usage

See throw. See turn.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• castability
  noun
• subcast
  noun
• castable
  adjective
• uncast
  adjective
• well-cast
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• casts
  plural

Participles

• casting
  present
• cast
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• cast
  simple
• casts
  simple
• have cast
  perfect
• has cast
  perfect
• am casting
  progressive
• are casting
  progressive
• is casting
  progressive
• have been casting
  perfect progressive
• has been casting
  perfect progressive

Past

• cast
  simple
• had cast
  perfect
• was casting
  progressive
• were casting
  progressive
• had been casting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will cast
  simple
• will have cast
  perfect
• will be casting
  progressive
• will have been casting
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of cast

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English casten, from Old Norse kasta “to throw”

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Explanation

A cast is the group of actors who make up a film or stage play. And the act of being chosen for the part? Well, they were cast by the director. That's showbiz for you. Cast also refers to various types of actions a person can take: if you throw out a fishing line in a particular way, you are said to cast it; if you fancy your chances in Vegas, you cast the dice at the craps table. And if you break a limb and they bandage it up in solid plaster for your friends to write all over? That, too, is a cast.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cast casts casting

And it will be cast globally, to figures doing what is necessary to save their country from invasion.

From Slate ● Oct. 17, 2026

BBC Newsbeat spoke to Street Fighter cast members Noah Centineo, Callina Liang and Andrew Koji to find out why they think the action movie can do the same.

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

The crucial thing, Mr. Silvertown explains, is that “leaves are cast off with abandon.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

Nearly 650 million of the 960 million registered voters cast their ballot in the last general election in 2024.

From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026

“I’ve learned to sail and I’m on my way! I’ve just cast off from the Troppo Tourists ship.”

From "Nim’s Island" by Wendy Orr

"It casts doubt over a system we're proud of and children that we're proud of," says Sarah Hopkins, who's been a headteacher here for eight years.

From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026

Since Diplodocus was first discovered in the United States in 1878, casts of its skeleton have appeared in major natural history museums around the world, particularly during the early 20th century.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 19, 2026

It is his conversations with fellow city solitaries that unveil smaller revelations, and Saramago casts the transformation of his protagonist in existential terms as Senhor José’s search becomes a project in itself.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

She casts a spell that her daughters forget about magic and never practice again.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

We all climbed into the car with jerky, unnatural movements like we’d recently been cut out of full-body casts and hadn’t yet become reacquainted with our full range of motion.

From "Liar, Liar" by Gary Paulsen

The National Assembly had just given final approval to the 2023 accounts, casting votes based on figures that now appeared erroneous.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026

Further casting for the four-hour play, which was developed in collaboration with journalists and feminist organisations in France, will be announced in the coming weeks.

From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026

OK, I’m casting my mind back to that Pirates of the Caribbean sequel where Bill Nighy had an octopus for a face.

From Slate ● Oct. 2, 2026

That this doesn’t play like jokey stunt casting speaks to the spirit of communal, all-hands-on-deck engagement.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026

Bailey climbs the oak tree to retrieve his hidden box before sunset, gazing down at the circus that sits bathed in deep orange light, casting long pointed shadows across the field.

From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern

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