n.
Pronunciation: ' r ō st
Function: verb
Etymology: Middle English rosten, from Anglo-French rostir, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German r ō sten to roast
Date: 13th century
transitive verb
1 a : to cook by exposing to dry heat (as in an oven or before a fire) or by surrounding with hot embers, sand, or stones < roast a potato in ashes> b : to dry and parch by exposure to heat < roast coffee beans>
2 : to heat (inorganic material) with access of air and without fusing to effect change (as expulsion of volatile matter, oxidation, or removal of sulfur from sulfide ores)
3 : to heat to excess < roast ed by the summer sun>
4 : to subject to severe criticism or ridicule <films have been roast ed by most critics ― H. J. Seldes>
5 : to honor (a person) at a roast
intransitive verb
1 : to cook food by heat
2 : to undergo being roasted