baking

[ bey-king ]

noun

1. the activity or practice of cooking food using dry heat, especially in an oven:

   Baking can give cuts of poultry a crispy, browned exterior.

2. food cooked using dry heat, especially bread, pastry, cakes, etc.:

   Nothing puts me into the Christmas spirit like the smells of holiday baking.

adjective

1. extremely hot:

   It was unseasonably cold last week, but this week it's absolutely baking.

2. used in preparing food cooked with dry heat, especially bread, pastry, cakes, etc.:

   I can't make cookies without a baking tray.

3. suited for use in pies, pastry, etc.: Compare cooking ( def 4 ), eating ( def 4 ).

   Proper baking apples are needed for a good apple crumble.

baking

/ ˈbeɪkɪŋ /

noun

1. 1. the process of cooking bread, cakes, etc
   2. ( as modifier )

      a baking dish

2. the bread, cakes, etc, cooked at one time

adjective

1. (esp of weather) very hot and dry

Word History and Origins

Origin of baking¹

First recorded in 1300–50; 1650–60 baking fordef 3; Middle English; bake ( def ) + -ing ¹( def ) for the noun senses; bake ( def ) + -ing ²( def ) for the adjective senses

Example Sentences

For anyone planning on doing any baking, you may be ferociously Googling and flipping through baking cookbooks to ensure you've thoroughly prepared to make an array of elite pies.

From Salon

The other was another edition of a baking contest that featured a dirty turkey cake and one with a gaping orifice that spits stuffing.

From Los Angeles Times

The thing I can never master is anything that has to do with baking.

From Los Angeles Times

They enter this curious and claustrophobic home only when Mr. Reed promises his wife is baking a pie in the other room, but he draws them into his labyrinth using false promises and rhetorical exercises.

From Los Angeles Times

Later they planned to try their best to make this as normal a day as possible — baking brownies, playing with their kids, cooking with family.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• blistering
• boiling
• red-hot
• scorching
• searing
• sizzling
• sweltering