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baste (v.1)

"sew together loosely," c. 1400, from Old French bastir "build, construct, sew up (a garment), baste, make, prepare, arrange" (12c., Modern French bâtir "to build"), probably from Frankish or some other Germanic source, from Proto-Germanic *bastjan "join together with bast" (source also of Old High German besten; see bast).

baste (v.2)

"to soak (cooking meat) in gravy or molten fat, moisten," late 14c., of unknown origin, possibly from Old French basser "to moisten, soak," from bassin "basin" (see basin). Related: Basted; basting.

baste (v.3)

"beat with a stick, thrash," 1530s, perhaps from the cookery sense of baste (v.2) or from Old Norse beysta "to beat" or a similar Scandinavian source (such as Swedish basa "to beat, flog," bösta "to thump"), from Proto-Germanic *baut-sti-, from PIE root *bhau- "to strike."

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Definitions of baste from WordNet
1
baste (v.)
cover with liquid before cooking;
baste a roast
baste (v.)
strike violently and repeatedly;
Synonyms: clobber / batter
baste (v.)
sew together loosely, with large stitches;
baste a hem
Synonyms: tack
2
baste (n.)
a loose temporary sewing stitch to hold layers of fabric together;
Synonyms: basting / basting stitch / tacking
From wordnet.princeton.edu