pasty

Everyday

1. noun (UK): A pastry case folded around a filling of meat and vegetables, baked; the Cornish pasty is famous. tree →
2. adjective: (of a face or skin) Pale and unhealthy-looking, like dough. tree →
3. adjective: Like paste: thick and sticky. tree →

In the lessons

In UK and Cornish life, pasties are a lunch food; Cornish miners took them underground and held the thick crust edge. In stories, «a pasty face» shows someone is ill, tired or has not been outside. Phrases: «Cornish pasty», «a meat pasty», «pasty-faced», «pale and pasty».

Examples

• We bought a hot Cornish pasty at the beach. tree →
• The pasty was filled with beef, potato and onion. tree →
• Tin miners used to eat pasties down the mines. tree →
• After being ill all week he looked pasty and tired. tree →
• The paint looked thick and pasty. tree →
• Gran bakes cheese and onion pasties on Saturdays. tree →
• I made the pasty according to the best rules; nothing has been left out. tree →

Note

Two pronunciations: the food is PASS-tee (short a); the pale adjective is PAYS-tee (like «paste»). Plural noun: pasties. In the US, the food is less known except in Michigan; «pasties» there can also mean something else, so be careful. Comparatives: pastier, pastiest.