biscuit

¹ American  

[bis-kit] / ˈbɪs kɪt /

noun

1. a kind of bread in small, soft cakes, raised with baking powder or soda, or sometimes with yeast; scone.

2. Chiefly British.

   1. a dry and crisp or hard bread in thin, flat cakes, made without yeast or other raising agent; a cracker.

   2. a cookie.

3. a pale-brown color.

4. Also called bisque.  Ceramics. unglazed earthenware or porcelain after firing.

5. Also called preform.  a piece of plastic or the like, prepared for pressing into a phonograph record.

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adjective

1. having the color biscuit.

biscuit ² American  

[bees-kwee] / bisˈkwi /

noun

French.

1. a cookie or cracker.

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biscuit British  

/ ˈbɪskɪt /

noun

1. US and Canadian word: cookie.  a small flat dry sweet or plain cake of many varieties, baked from a dough

2. a kind of small roll similar to a muffin

3. 1. a pale brown or yellowish-grey colour

   2. ( as adjective )

      biscuit gloves

4. Also called: bisque.  earthenware or porcelain that has been fired but not glazed

5. slang to be regarded (by the speaker) as the most surprising thing that could have occurred

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• biscuitlike
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of biscuit

1300–50; Middle English bysquyte < Middle French biscuit ( Medieval Latin biscoctus ), variant of bescuit seamen's bread, literally, twice cooked, equivalent to bes bis ¹ + cuit, past participle of cuire < Latin coquere to cook ¹

Explanation

A biscuit is a small, round type of bread. A biscuit is delicious with butter, or you might prefer your biscuits with gravy. Biscuits are a lot like rolls, and they often serve the same purpose by being side dishes or appetizers. Baking powder or soda is used to leaven biscuits, which are best served when warm and soft. A hard, stale biscuit isn’t very appealing. People often eat biscuits as a side dish with dinner, or smothered with gravy at breakfast.

Example Sentences

It’s softer, more savory, a little more substantial, but still gives the homestyle feel and comfort of a biscuit in the morning.

From Salon • May 22, 2026

"I know there's sort of a fly-tipping epidemic," he said, "but that takes the biscuit, doesn't it?"

From BBC • Mar. 27, 2026

One group, known as content neurons, responded to specific images such as a biscuit, regardless of the task being performed.

From Science Daily • Mar. 24, 2026

A Sydney man who tried to post native lizards, dragons and other reptiles out of Australia in bags of popcorn and biscuit tins has been sentenced to eight years in jail, authorities said Tuesday.

From Barron's • Feb. 17, 2026

Ben held out the biscuit, but he did not offer the gift audaciously.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

Related Words

• camel
• cream
• khaki
• off-white
• tan
• taupe