bask

[ bask, bahsk ]

/ bæsk, bɑsk /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR bask ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object)

to lie in or be exposed to a pleasant warmth: to bask in the sunshine.

to enjoy a pleasant situation: He basked in royal favor.

verb (used with object)

Obsolete. to expose to warmth or heat.

Nearby words

Origin of bask

1350–1400; Middle English < Old Norse bathask to bathe oneself, equivalent to bath- bath¹ + -ask reflexive suffix

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for basking

Not coincidentally, his weekly is basking in the spotlight—and racking up huge sales—while performing this “service.”
Warsawgate Rocks Poland|Andrew Nagorski|June 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But the separatists continue to think they are basking in the glory of their accomplishment.
Inside East Ukraine’s Make-Believe Republics|Jamie Dettmer|May 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Lewis was enormously pleased with himself, basking in the attention from the New York media.
Banks Really Are Different Five Years After the Financial Crisis|Daniel Gross|September 17, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Taken all together, Election Day has progressives “basking in the glow,” as Ellison puts it.
What Liberals Want in Second Obama Term|Michelle Cottle|November 13, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Occasionally, Axwell raises his hands high in the air like an electro conductor, basking in his power over the crowd.
Axwell Presents Cosmic Opera at New York’s Hammerstein Ballroom|Marlow Stern|February 25, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The buffaloes generally keep to the pools and muddy places, where they lie wallowing or basking in the warm mud for hours.
The Jungle Book|Rudyard Kipling
In the blistering heat the desert lay sun-drenched, basking, silent.
The Wave|Algernon Blackwood
I've been basking in the Duchess's smiles and wearing my new frocks.
The Quiver, Annual Volume 10/1899|Various
She looked down at Lady Kitty, who was basking in front of the fire, and her cold eyes grew maternal.
The Quiver, 1/1900|Anonymous
They lay in thousands on the low rocks that lined that entire side of the island, basking in the sun of the antarctic seas.
The Sea Lions|James Fenimore Cooper

British Dictionary definitions for basking

bask

/ (bɑːsk) /

verb (intr usually foll by in)

to lie in or be exposed to pleasant warmth, esp that of the sun

to flourish or feel secure under some benevolent influence or favourable condition

Word Origin for bask

C14: from Old Norse bathask to bathe

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for basking

basking

adj.

1742, present participle adjective from bask (v.). Basking shark is recorded from 1769.

bask

late 14c., basken "to wallow (in blood)," with loss of middle syllable, from Old Norse baðask "to bathe oneself," reflexive of baða "bathe" (see bathe). Modern meaning "soak up a flood of warmth" is apparently due to Shakespeare's use of the word in reference to sunshine in "As You Like It" (1600). Related: Basked; basking.