Is cook more general than bake and fry?

Yes. Cook is the broad word for preparing food with heat.

Can I say 'cook food' in formal writing?

Yes. It is normal in both spoken and written English.

What is the difference between cook and chef?

A cook prepares food. A chef is usually a trained professional cook, often in a restaurant.

Can cook be a noun too?

Yes. A cook is a person whose job is to prepare food.

← Dictionary

cook

/kʊk/

IELTSAcademic

verb

To prepare food by heating it. You can cook at home, in a restaurant, or on a fire.

I cook rice every evening.
She cooked dinner for her family.
We cooked over an open fire.

noun

A person whose job is to prepare food. In many places, this is a general word for someone who cooks at work.

The cook started early today.
He works as a cook in a hotel.
The school cook made soup.

Adinary Nuance

Cook is the general everyday word for preparing food. It is broader than bake, which usually means cooking with dry heat in an oven, and fry, which means cooking in hot fat or oil. In speaking, cook is the safest choice when you do not want to name the method.

In other languages

Vietnamese: nấu
Spanish: cocinar
Chinese: 做饭
Japanese: 料理する
Korean: 요리하다

Etymology

Cook comes from Old English coc and Latin coquere, meaning “to boil” or “to prepare food.” The word has been in English for many centuries.

Common phrases

cook dinnercook ricecook at homecook from scratch

Synonyms

prepare make whip up

Related words

bake fry boil recipe

Frequently asked questions

Is cook more general than bake and fry?: Yes. Cook is the broad word for preparing food with heat.
Can I say 'cook food' in formal writing?: Yes. It is normal in both spoken and written English.
What is the difference between cook and chef?: A cook prepares food. A chef is usually a trained professional cook, often in a restaurant.
Can cook be a noun too?: Yes. A cook is a person whose job is to prepare food.