cooking

1 of 3

present participle of cook entry 2

cooking

2 of 3

noun

cook·​ing ˈku̇-kiŋ 

1

a

: the act of preparing food for eating especially by heating : the act of cooking food

I do most of the cooking for our family.

b

: a manner of preparing food : cuisine

a technique used in French cooking

2

: food that is cooked

Do you like my cooking?

see also home cooking

cooking

3 of 3

adjective

: suitable or used for cooking

bought some cooking apples

cooking techniques

Cooking time is about 30 minutes.

Examples of cooking in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

There are tons of basic little bins, boxes, racks, and stands hiding in Amazon’s kitchen and dining section that’ll make your cooking space just a bit neater. —Clint Davis, People.com, 26 Apr. 2025

Most baked pastas take hours to finish, from the layering to the actual cooking in the oven, but not this skillet recipe. —Alana Al-Hatlani, Southern Living, 26 Apr. 2025

Adjective

The Los Angeles native took off during the early days of quarantine with her wonderfully weird and specific character videos: a woman who gets turned down by her roommate mid-cooking demo, and someone who's been excluded from their family's erotic film. —Patrick Ryan usa Today, USA Today, 3 Aug. 2022

The Natural & Delicious high protein, 20% Ancestral Grain recipes are made up of 60 percent animal products (pre-cooking weight), 20% organic spelt and organic oats, and 20% vegetables, fruits, vitamins, and minerals. —Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 22 Oct. 2022

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1596, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adjective

1791, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing cooking

• be cooking
• cooking spray
• home cooking
• Now you're cooking

Rhymes for cooking

• booking
• brooking
• hooking
• looking
• overlooking