toast

Where does the word "toast" come from? It comes from Latin tostus, passing through Old French before entering English (1700s).

Toast’s story begins in Latin: tostus meant “parched, roasted.” Past participle of 'torrere', to parch, the root of 'torrid' and 'torrent'. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as toster. A verb for grilling or browning over a fire. It reached English by 1700s as toast. Spiced toast was dropped into wine, so 'drinking a toast' to someone treated them as what flavoured the drink. Today, toast means sliced bread browned by heat; a salute made by raising glasses.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient tostus "parched, roasted", past participle of 'torrere', to parch, the root of 'torrid' and 'torrent'.
2. Stage 2 · Old French · medieval toster "to roast, grill", a verb for grilling or browning over a fire.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1700s toast "browned bread; a drink in honour", spiced toast was dropped into wine, so 'drinking a toast' to someone treated them as what flavoured the drink.