barbecue

The word “barbecue” means a grill or fireplace used for cooking food, usually outdoors over hot coals or gas flame. In plain terms, cooking food outdoors over fire or coals, the grill used to do it, or the social gathering built around it.

“Barbecue” is pronounced BAH-bih-kyoo (/ˈbɑɹbɪˌkju/ in IPA).

Here is “barbecue” used in a sentence: “He fired up the barbecue for the family gathering.”

Depending on how it is used, “barbecue” can be a noun and a verb.

The word “barbecue” comes from Spanish. From Spanish barbacoa, from Taíno barbakoa, meaning a raised wooden framework the Taíno people used for sleeping or curing meat.

“Barbecue” is an uncommon word in modern English, usually learned at around the A2 level.

“Barbecue” has 3 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a grill or fireplace used for cooking food, usually outdoors over hot coals or gas flame.

Barbecuing generally refers to cooking food over an open flame or hot coals, often with a smoky flavor, and can include slower cooking methods, while grilling typically implies quicker cooking directly over high heat. In casual use, however, the two terms are frequently used interchangeably for outdoor cooking.

'Barbecue' is the standard spelling, while 'BBQ' is a common informal abbreviation used in casual writing, signage, and menus. 'Barbeque' is a widely used alternative spelling but is considered nonstandard compared to 'barbecue'.

A barbecue can refer to the grill or fireplace itself used for cooking outdoors, or to the social event centered on food cooked outdoors, such as 'we're having a barbecue this weekend.' Context usually makes clear whether the word refers to the equipment or the gathering.