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broil¹

(broil)

v. broiled, broil·ing, broils

v.tr.

1. To cook by direct radiant heat, as over a grill or under an electric element.

2. To expose to great heat.

v.intr.

To be exposed to great heat.

1. The act of broiling or the condition of being broiled.

2. Food, especially meat, that is broiled.

[Middle English broilen, from Old French brusler, bruler, perhaps from usler, to burn (with br- from bruir, to burn), from Latin ustulāre, to scorch, from ustus, past participle of ūrere, to burn.]

broil²

(broil) Archaic

A rowdy argument.

intr.v. broiled, broil·ing, broils

To engage in a rowdy argument.

[From obsolete broil, to brawl, from Middle English broilen, from Anglo-Norman broiller, to mix up, confuse, from Old French brouiller, from breu, broth, brew, from Vulgar Latin *brodum, of Germanic origin; see bhreu- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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