bake

1 of 2

verb

ˈbāk 

baked; baking; bakes

transitive verb

1

: to cook by dry heat especially in an oven

bake a cake

bake bread

baked potatoes

baking [=roasting] a chicken

2

: to dry or harden by subjecting to heat

intransitive verb

1

: to prepare food by baking it

a cook who enjoys baking

2

: to become baked

a loaf of bread baking in the oven

3

: to be or become extremely hot

sidewalks baking in the sun

bake

2 of 2

noun

1

: the act or process of baking

2

: a social gathering at which a baked food is served

Examples of bake in a Sentence

Verb

She wrapped the fish in foil and baked it for 15 minutes.

How long has the cake been baking?

They baked the bricks in the sun.

The streets were baking in the afternoon heat.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Books about inclusive leadership tend to focus on gender and race, and not how to bake inclusion into your leadership model. —Julie Kratz, Forbes, 6 Oct. 2024

That all children hate greens is baked into pop culture. —Yasmin Tayag, The Atlantic, 6 Oct. 2024

Noun

That’s when the judges, Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood, go from workstation to workstation sampling each contestant’s bake before issuing a judgement. —Alli Rosenbloom, CNN, 7 Oct. 2024

Deliciously easy bakes for one to six people by Edd Kimber, published by Kyle Books at £22. —The Week Uk, theweek, 29 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Old English bacan; akin to Old High German bahhan to bake, Greek phōgein to roast

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun

1835, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing bake

• bake sale
• pre-bake
• wake and bake

Kids Definition

bake

1 of 2 verb

ˈbāk 

baked; baking

1

: to cook or become cooked by dry heat especially in an oven

2

: to dry or harden by heat

bake bricks

3

: to be or become very hot

a sidewalk baking in the sun

baker noun

bake

2 of 2 noun

1

: the act or process of baking

2

: a social gathering at which a baked food is served

especially : clambake