baste
1 Americanverb (used with object)
verb (used with object)
noun
verb
verb
verb
Etymology
Origin of baste1
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English basten, from Anglo-French, Middle French bastir “to build, baste,” from Germanic; compare Old High German bestan “to mend, patch,” Middle High German besten “to lace, tie”; see also bast
Origin of baste2
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English basten, baist, of obscure origin; perhaps from Old French, Middle French basser “to soak (bread), moisten (meat)”
Origin of baste3
First recorded in 1525–35; variant of baist, perhaps from Old Norse beysta “to beat, thrash”; perhaps from baste 2 ( def. ) (the ladle for cooking used as a weapon)
Explanation
When cooks baste food, they brush or drizzle a savory liquid on it as it's cooking. If you baste your Thanksgiving turkey while it bakes, it will stay moist and tender. A chef might baste grilled vegetables with their marinade, or baste roasting meat with its own oily drippings. The technique keeps food from drying out as it cooks. Another meaning of baste is "to sew loosely." You might quickly baste the hem of a curtain before stitching it securely in place. The origin of the culinary baste is a bit of a mystery, but the sewing term comes from the Old French bastir, "construct" or "sew up."
Vocabulary lists containing baste
Much Ado About Nothing
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Blanch, Poach, and Scald: Cooking Methods
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Bronx Masquerade
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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.
See Examples For:
Some baste their eggs in hot fat, some insist on a lid to trap steam and ensure even cooking.
From Salon ● Feb. 11, 2025
You baste every 30 minutes before removing the cheesecloth to cook uncovered to burnish the skin.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 16, 2023
Cook and baste the fish until the thickest parts reach 115°F to 120°F, or are nearly opaque when cut into, 2 to 3 minutes.
From Washington Times ● May 19, 2023
To add to the flavour, Taylor’s preferred liquid to baste the turkey with is coffee, butter and maple syrup.
From BBC ● Dec. 7, 2022
That baste, Cuhullin," replied Fin; "and how to manage I don't know.
From Celtic Folk and Fairy Tales by Various
The programme title is a play on Lord Lloyd Webber's 1986 musical The Phantom of the Opera, basted on the novel by Gaston Leroux.
From BBC ● Jan. 20, 2025
Not so readily, however: The researchers cut a black spatula into small pieces and basted them in 320-degree cooking oil for 15 minutes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 24, 2024
But perhaps most memorable, especially for anyone who has ever babied, basted and otherwise fussed over a 14-pound bird, is the season four episode “Turkey in a Can.”
From Salon ● Nov. 11, 2023
As a child, Yamamoto said he sometimes snacked on soy-sauce basted grasshoppers.
From Reuters ● Jul. 26, 2023
There were arches of spun sugar, towers of pastry, basted birds posed for flight.
From "The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge" by M.T. Anderson and Eugene Yelchin
In August 2023, the state blamed another botched satellite launch on an error in the emergency basting system, but said it was "not a big issue".
From BBC ● May 21, 2025
My method was always bringing the steak to room temperature, salting it heavily, then cooking it in a cast-iron pan that was scorchingly hot before basting with butter, garlic thyme and rosemary.
From Salon ● Feb. 21, 2024
Roast for two hours, basting one to two times with more butter, before flipping breast side up to finish.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 16, 2023
We layer on the flavors - first as a quick marinade for the chicken, then as a basting sauce, and finally as a finishing sauce.
From Washington Times ● Aug. 11, 2023
A quick basting stitch lets her know where to set her seams, her cuffs, her hem.
From "Bronx Masquerade" by Nikki Grimes
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
