Synonyms

cooking

American

[kook-ing] / ˈkʊk ɪŋ /

noun

the act of a person or thing that cooks.
the art or practice of preparing food; cookery.

adjective

used in preparing foods.

All of my cooking utensils are packed, so I had to order pizza.
suited for use in cooked food.

The Golden Delicious is our favorite cooking apple, especially for applesauce.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

self-cooking

adjective

Etymology

Origin of cooking

First recorded in 1635–45; cook ¹ + -ing ¹ for the noun senses; cook ¹ + -ing ² for the adjective senses

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.

Cooking a full-fledged meal from scratch seems too laborious.

From Salon • Jun. 6, 2026

He also met a group of primary school pupils taking part in potting in the foundation's Growing Together, Cooking Together programme.

From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026

Cooking one more night a week could result in you having a bit more wiggle room in your “fun” budget.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 27, 2026

Cooking the fish “en papillote” makes for a showy presentation, but is actually a breeze to do.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 24, 2026

Cooking, I try my best to balance the temperature and heat.

From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023