to roast
Preserved but no longer current.
To arrest. I'll roast the dab; I'll arrest the rascal.--Also to jeer, ridicule, or banter. He stood the roast; he was the butt.--Roast meat clothes; Sunday or holiday-clothes. To cry roast meat; to boast of one's situation. To rule the roast; to be master or paramount.
Era: ca. 1811 (Georgian)
Examples
Tatoeba sentence #10921659 (CC BY 2.0 FR, tatoeba.org, retrieved 2026-07-31)
Sources & notes
Historical definition reproduced from Grose’s Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue (1811 edition, public domain; Project Gutenberg #5402, retrieved 2026-07-31). Reflects the attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to roast” mean?
To arrest. I'll roast the dab; I'll arrest the rascal.--Also to jeer, ridicule, or banter. He stood the roast; he was the butt.--Roast meat clothes; Sunday or holiday-clothes. To cry roast meat; to boast of one's situation. To rule the roast; to be master or paramount.
Is “to roast” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.