To Bake
To Burn Something, To Grill
transitive verb, godan verb
This word consists of kanji with hiragana attached. Because the hiragana ends with an う sound, you know this word is a verb. The kanji itself means bake or burn. So, the verb vocab version is to bake, to burn something, or even to grill.
焼く means to apply heat to something to change it in a physical way. It can refer to lightly toasting something, charring it, or even burning it to ashes depending on the context. It's commonly used in cooking contexts to describe baking, grilling, or roasting food. But it can also be used with pottery, film photography, and even sun-tanning.
The reading comes from the reading you learned with the kanji.
今日はチーズケーキを焼くつもりです。
I am going to bake a cheesecake today.
これを庭で見つけたら、すぐに焼いてください。ダニのタマゴなんで。
If you find these in your yard, burn them immediately. They're tick eggs.
そのお肉、もう焼けてるんじゃない？焼きすぎになる前にお皿に上げよう！
Isn't that meat already cooked? Let's move it to the plate before it becomes overcooked!