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”

Example Sentences

The spacecraft has been rotated to face the sun to "bake off any ice" and heaters have been activated, "and we still see blockage," he said.

From Barron's • Apr. 9, 2026

Tradwives and mommy bloggers are characterized by a cartoonishly slick and sanctimonious femininity; they perform choreographed dances with obedient children, bake sourdough bread, offer prayers and affiliate codes in the same breath.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026

"We just love cake," Ivy says, adding it's fun to bake with her mum and sister.

From BBC • Mar. 28, 2026

Well, if you use ChatGPT to plan it, maybe just bake in extra time in case things go awry.

From Slate • Mar. 28, 2026

No elders to bake cookies with during the holidays, like Serenity.

From "I Can Make This Promise" by Christine Day

Related Words

• heat
• melt
• simmer
• stew
• warm