A compound of hard + bake
Proto-Germanic *harduz
Proto-West Germanic *hard(ī)
Old English heard ‘hard’
Middle English hard
English hard
Proto-Indo-European *bʰh₃g-
Proto-Germanic *bakaną ‘to bake’
Proto-West Germanic *bakan ‘to bake’
Old English bacan ‘to bake’
Middle English baken ‘to bake’
English bake
Today it means
noun A hard confection made of boiled brown sugar or molasses with almonds, flavoured with orange or lemon juice, similar to a nougat.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / hardbake
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