biscuit

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   A small, flat, sweet baked food that is hard and crisp (British English); a cookie.

   She offered me a cup of tea and a chocolate biscuit.

2. 2
   noun

   A small soft round bread, often eaten with meals (American English).

   We had warm biscuits and gravy for breakfast.

3. 3
   noun

   A dry, hard, plain cracker.

   They served cheese and biscuits after dinner.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Biscuit came into Middle English through French from Latin bis “twice” and coctus “cooked,” giving the original sense “twice cooked.” The name referred to biscuits being baked and then slowly dried in an oven so that they would keep.

PIE word *dwóh₁ Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁ Proto-Indo-European *dwís Proto-Italic *dwis Old Latin duis Early Medieval Latin bis Proto-Indo-European *pekʷ- Proto-Indo-European *-eti Proto-Indo-European *pékʷeti Proto-Italic *kʷekʷō Early Medieval Latin coquō Early Medieval Latin coctus Early Medieval Latin biscoctus Old French bescuitbor. Middle English bisquyte English biscuit From earlier bisket, from Middle English bisquyte, from Old French bescuit (French biscuit); doublet of biscotto.

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External links

• Google Images
• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary