baste

Definitions  ·  Examples  ·  Pronunciations  ·  Etymologies  ·  Related  ·  Statistics  ·  Comments (1)  · 
It is a kind of bribery Faix, then, it's not c'ruption anyhow, for the baste is as c'rupt as he can be already.

View all »
Definitions (15)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (4)

  1. transitive verb To sew loosely with large running stitches so as to hold together temporarily.
  2. transitive verb To moisten (meat, for example) periodically with a liquid, such as melted butter or a sauce, especially while cooking.
  3. transitive verb To beat vigorously; thrash. See Synonyms at beat.

Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (5)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (2)

Toggle WordNet definitions WordNet (4)

Toggle elsewhere links Elsewhere on the web

View all »
Examples (50)

  • There, help me on to the back o' the baste--bad luck to the badgers, say I Thus muttering to himself and his comrades, half exasperated by the stunning effects of his fall, yet rather thankful to find that no real damage was done, Larry remounted, and all three continued their journey with not much less enjoyment, but with abated energy Thus much for the beginning. —  Over the Rocky Mountains Wandering Will in the Land of the Redskin
  • Presently Squill came up Ah, boys," he said, "ye don't onderstand the natur' o' the baste--see here Taking a piece of dried fish from his pocket, he went boldly forward and presented it. —  The Crew of the Water Wagtail
  • It is a kind of bribery Faix, then, it's not c'ruption anyhow, for the baste is as c'rupt as he can be already. —  Twice Bought
  • But the same man set great store by that same baste--bad scran to her! —  Adrift in the Ice-Fields
  • "Tim, me darlin', be quick here, or the baste will be off. —  The Three Admirals
 

Tags

baste hasn't been tagged yet.

Sign up or sign in to add tags.

Stats

This word has been looked up 153 times.

On Twitter

Photos from

flickr images

Add a related word »
Related

Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

broil ·  stewpan ·  cornflour ·  nutmeg ·  rigiment ·  frying-pan ·  roux ·  spaghetti ·  curry ·  seasoning ·  counthry

Used in the same contextWord Family

baste:   basting
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (7)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (3)

  1. Middle English basten, from Old French bastir, of Germanic origin.
  2. Middle English basten.
  3. Probably of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse beysta; see bhau- in Indo-European roots.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (4)

  1. First known in preterit or past participle baste, baist, basit, perhaps with orig. infinitive *base, from Swedish basa, strike, beat, whip (cf. bash, bask); some compare Icelandic beysta, beyrsta = Swedish bösta = Danish böste, beat, drub, generally associated with börste (= Swedish borsta), brush, from börste, a brush, bristle, = Swedish borste, a brush, borst, a bristle. Others take baste to be a fig. use of baste; cf. anoint in sense of baste.
  2. Origin unknown; the word first occurs in the 16th century. Cf. baste.
  3. from Middle English basten, from Old French bastir, French bátir = Spanish bastear = Italian imbastire, baste, sew (cf. Spanish Portuguese Italian basta, basting), prob. from Old High German bestan, patch (Middle High German besten, lace, tie, OFries. besten, baste), from bast, bast, the fibers of which were used for thread: see bast.
  4. Another spelling of beast, retaining the former pronunciation of that word.
 

Pronunciations
Record your own »

/beɪst/
by American Heritage

Charts

frequency chart

Bubble size: how much this word was used in a year

Bubble height: used more or less than expected, vs. all uses evenly distributed

You can expect to see this word several times a year.

Recently looked up

extensive · ritzy · typifying · upbraid · cross-cut

Recent Favorites

pygopagus · sanglant · Astacus · sweetbread · qualms

Recent Pronunciations

Der dicke Dachdecker deckte dir dein Dach, drum dank dem dicken Dachdecker, dass der dicke Dachdecker dir dein Dach deckte. · weitläufig · und wenn sie nicht gestorben sind, so leben sie noch heute · redescheu · selbstverständlich