baste
Baste (verb) means to drip melted fat, butter, or juices over food (usually meat) while it cooks, to keep it moist. Example: “Baste the turkey every twenty minutes so the skin stays juicy.”
How to use baste
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishIn cooking: spooning fat or juices over food as it roasts. In sewing: tacking fabric together loosely before the real stitching.
Don't confuse with "baste" meaning to beat someone (an old, rare sense) — the cooking and sewing meanings are the ones people actually use today.
Word forms
basted past tense, basted past tense, basted past tense, bastes plural, bastes singular, bastes singular, bastes singular
Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
_____ the turkey every twenty minutes so the skin stays juicy.
Etymology
From Old French bastir, "to build or sew up a garment" — the cooking sense (dripping fat over meat) developed separately in English.
Synonyms
View more →Related words
Rhymes for baste
See all rhymes for baste →Frequently asked questions
What does “baste” mean?
The word “baste” means to drip melted fat, butter, or juices over food (usually meat) while it cooks, to keep it moist. In plain terms, in cooking: spooning fat or juices over food as it roasts. In sewing: tacking fabric together loosely before the real stitching.
How do you pronounce “baste”?
“Baste” is pronounced bayst (/beɪst/ in IPA).
How do you use “baste” in a sentence?
Here is “baste” used in a sentence: “Baste the turkey every twenty minutes so the skin stays juicy.”
What part of speech is “baste”?
“Baste” is a verb.
Where does the word “baste” come from?
The word “baste” comes from Old French. From Old French bastir, "to build or sew up a garment" — the cooking sense (dripping fat over meat) developed separately in English.
How many meanings does “baste” have?
“Baste” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: to drip melted fat, butter, or juices over food (usually meat) while it cooks, to keep it moist.
Featured in
Vocabulary lists that include baste: