English dictionary

cook Meaning & Definition

ˈku̇k

What Does Cook Mean?

As a noun, cook means a person who prepares food for eating. It is also used to mean a technical or industrial process comparable to cooking food. As a verb, it means to prepare (food) for eating by a heating process. As a biographical name, it means James 1728–1779 English navigator and explorer.

Cook at a Glance

Part of speech	noun, verb, biographical name
Pronunciation	/ˈku̇k/
Synonyms	make, fake and prepare
Antonyms	clarify, clear (up) and explain

Cook Definition (Noun)

a person who prepares food for eating
a technical or industrial process comparable to cooking food
a substance so processed

Cook as a Verb

to prepare (food) for eating by a heating process
Cook the vegetables over low heat for 10 minutes. / The fish was cooked in a wine sauce. / He cooked dinner for his guests.
concoct, fabricate
to alter (something, such as records) with the intention of deceiving or misleading : falsify, doctor see also cook the books
The point is that every country's numbers are the result of a specific set of testing and accounting regimes. Everyone is cooking the data, one way or another.
to subject (something) to the action of heat or fire during preparation
Agents discovered a recipe for cooking meth at his lab …
to beat or score on (an opponent) decisively
Their defense got cooked. / … I would like to play against him [Michael Jordan]. … I would've cooked him, too.
to criticize (someone) publicly and especially on social media
As for [Marlon] Humphrey, the social media reaction was so severe that he conceded, I'm lowkey getting cooked right now.
to prepare food for eating especially by means of heat
We're too busy to cook tonight. / I enjoy cooking for friends.
to undergo the action of being cooked
The rice is cooking now.
occur, happen
She tried to find out what was cooking in the committee.
to perform, do, or proceed well
The jazz quartet was cooking along. / The party cooked right through the night.

Cook as a Biographical Name

James 1728–1779 English navigator and explorer

Antonyms of Cook

clarify clear (up)explain illuminate illustrate interpret spell out decipher clone copy copycat duplicate imitate mimic reduplicate replicate reproduce

Cook in a Sentence

I'm a terrible cook, so I eat a lot of frozen dinners.

Police found two meth cooks working in the illicit lab.

I'm cooking bangers and mash.

He's in the kitchen, cooking.

The dinner is cooking on the stove.

Look at that poor dog shut up in that car on a day like today - it must be cooking in there.

Crank up the Coltrane and start cooking!

On the Wagner piece, the orchestra was cooking!

Cook the vegetables over low heat for 10 minutes.

The fish was cooked in a wine sauce.

He cooked dinner for his guests.

The point is that every country's numbers are the result of a specific set of testing and accounting regimes. Everyone is cooking the data, one way or another.

Agents discovered a recipe for cooking meth at his lab …

Their defense got cooked.

… I would like to play against him [Michael Jordan]. … I would've cooked him, too.

As for [Marlon] Humphrey, the social media reaction was so severe that he conceded, I'm lowkey getting cooked right now.

We're too busy to cook tonight.

I enjoy cooking for friends.

The rice is cooking now.

She tried to find out what was cooking in the committee.

The jazz quartet was cooking along.

The party cooked right through the night.

it turns out the pharmaceutical researcher had cooked her data

wondered what was cooking when several police cars pulled up to their neighbor's house

the hearty meals prepared by the cook at summer camp

cooked up a scheme to get out of doing the dishes

Cook the vegetables over low heat for 10 minutes. / The fish was cooked in a wine sauce. / He cooked dinner for his guests.

Their defense got cooked. / … I would like to play against him [Michael Jordan]. … I would've cooked him, too.

We're too busy to cook tonight. / I enjoy cooking for friends.

The jazz quartet was cooking along. / The party cooked right through the night.

Word Forms & Grammar

cooks

cook

cooked

cook·ing

cook·able adjective

cookable

cooking

Cook

James Cook

cook one's goose

cook (up)

cook up

Origin of Cook

Middle English, from Old English cōc, from Latin coquus, from coquere to cook; akin to Old English āfigen fried, Greek pessein to cook

First Known Use

before 12th century

15th centuryi

Frequently Asked Questions About Cook

Is cook a noun or a verb?

Cook is mainly used as a noun, but it can also be used as a verb and a biographical name.

What is another word for cook?

You can replace cook with words such as make, fake and prepare. See the full list of cook synonyms and antonyms.