cast

UK: /ˈkɑːst/ US: /kæst/ ,(kast, käst)

Inflections of 'cast' (v): (⇒ conjugate)

casts

v 3rd person singular

casting

v pres p

cast

v past

cast

v past p

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

cast /kæst/   v., cast, cast•ing, n. 
v. 

1. [~ + object] to throw or hurl;
   fling:
   to cast dice.
2. to direct (the eye, etc.):
   [~ + object] She kept casting glances at me across the room.
3. [~ + object] to cause to fall;
   put or send forth:
   This special lightbulb casts a soft light.
4. to draw (lots), as in telling fortunes:
   [~ + object] The soldiers cast lots to see who would draw guard duty.
5. Sport to throw out (a fishing line, etc.):
   [~ + object] I was casting my line from the shore when it got tangled with hers.
6. [~ + object] to shed or drop:
   The snake cast its skin.
7. [~ + object] to put or place, esp. by force:
   The villain was cast into prison.
8. to deposit or give (a ballot):
   [~ + object] cast his ballot for president.
9. [~ + object] to form or arrange;
   plan out:
   He cast his speech in more military terms.
10. Show Business
    • [~ + object] to select actors for (a play, etc.):
      The directors and producers were casting the part of Hamlet.
    • to assign a role to (an actor): [~ + object]
      They cast him in the role of Caesar.
      [~ + object + as + object]
      They cast him as Hamlet in their production.
11. to form (an object) by pouring metal, etc., into a mold and letting it harden:
    [~ + object] The statue was cast from bronze.
12. cast about or around ,
    • [~ + about/around + object] to search;
      look:
      I cast about the room to find a container.
    • [ ~ + for + obj] to seek:
      always casting around for some way to make more money.
    • [no object] to devise a plan;
      scheme:
      She was casting about to get the boss's attention.
13. cast away or aside,
    • to reject;
      discard: [~ + away/aside + object]
      They cast aside our objections.
      [~ + object + away/aside]
      Don't cast it away.
14. cast back, [~ + object + back] to refer to something past;
    go back to something past:
    I cast my mind back to the days of my childhood.
15. cast off,
    • [ ~ + off + obj] to discard;
      throw away;
      reject:
      We cast off our doubts and signed the contract.
    • to let go or let loose, as a ship from a mooring: [~ + off + object]
      The sailors cast off the ropes and set sail.
      [~ + object + off]
      They cast the ropes off and set sail.
    • Textiles [~ + off + object] to complete a knitted fabric by looping over or removing (the final stitches):
      began to cast off the last row of stitches.
16. cast out, [~ + out + object] to force to leave;
    expel;
    banish:
    They said he could cast out demons and heal the sick.

n. [countable]

17. the act of throwing.
18. Games
    • a throw of dice:
      After each cast, the player may bid or take a card.
19. Sport the act of throwing a fishing line or net onto the water:
    My first cast went out about fifteen feet.
20. Show Business the group of performers in a play, etc.;
    players:
    [usually singular] The cast threw a party after the last performance.
21. • something made by pouring liquid metal, etc., into a mold and letting it harden.
22. Medicine a rigid, hard covering used to protect and hold in place a broken bone:
    They put my arm in a cast.
23. sort;
    kind;
    style;
    quality:
    minds of a philosophical cast.
24. a turning of the eye to the side.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

cast  (kast, käst), v., cast, cast•ing, n., adj. 
v.t. 

1. to throw or hurl;
   fling:
   The gambler cast the dice.
2. to throw off or away:
   He cast the advertisement in the wastebasket.
3. to direct (the eye, a glance, etc.), esp. in a cursory manner:
   She cast her eyes down the page.
4. to cause to fall upon something or in a certain direction;
   send forth:
   to cast a soft light;
   to cast a spell;
   to cast doubts.
5. to draw (lots), as in telling fortunes.
6. Sport [Angling.]
   • to throw out (a fishing line, net, bait, etc.):
     The fisherman cast his line.
   • to fish in (a stream, an area, etc.):
     He has often cast this brook.
7. to throw down or bring to the ground:
   She cast herself on the sofa.
8. to part with;
   lose:
   The horse cast a shoe.
9. to shed or drop (hair, fruit, etc.):
   The snake cast its skin.
10. Veterinary Diseases (of an animal) to bring forth (young), esp. abortively.
11. to send off (a swarm), as bees do.
12. to throw or set aside;
    discard or reject;
    dismiss:
    He cast the problem from his mind.
13. to throw forth, as from within;
    emit or eject;
    vomit.
14. to throw up (earth, sod, etc.), as with a shovel.
15. to put or place, esp. hastily or forcibly:
    to cast someone in prison.
16. to deposit or give (a ballot or vote).
17. to bestow;
    confer:
    to cast blessings upon someone.
18. to make suitable or accordant;
    tailor:
    He cast his remarks to fit the occasion.
19. Show Business [Theat.]
    • to select actors for (a play, motion picture, or the like).
    • to allot a role to (an actor).
    • to assign an actor to (a role).
20. to form (an object) by pouring metal, plaster, etc., in a fluid state into a mold and letting it harden.
21. to form (metal, plaster, etc.) into a particular shape by pouring it into a mold in a fluid state and letting it harden.
22. Metallurgy to tap (a blast furnace).
23. Mathematics to compute or calculate;
    add, as a column of figures.
24. Astrology to compute or calculate (a horoscope) astrologically;
    forecast.
25. to turn or twist;
    warp.
26. Nautical, Naval Terms to turn the head of (a vessel), esp. away from the wind in getting under way.
27. Sport [Fox Hunting.] (of a hunter) to lead or direct (hounds) over ground believed to have been recently traveled by a fox.
28. [Archaic.] to contrive, devise, or plan.
29. [Obs.] to ponder.

v.i. 

30. to throw.
31. to receive form in a mold.
32. Mathematics to calculate or add.
33. to conjecture;
    forecast.
34. (of hounds) to search an area for scent:
    The setter cast, but found no scent.
35. to warp, as timber.
36. Nautical, Naval Terms (of a vessel) to turn, esp. to get the head away from the wind;
    tack.
37. Show Business to select the actors for a play, motion picture, or the like.
38. [Obs.]
    • to consider.
    • to plan or scheme.
39. cast about:
    • to look, as to find something;
      search;
      seek:
      We cast about for something to do during the approaching summer vacation.
    • to scheme;
      plan:
      He cast about how he could avoid work.
40. cast away:
    • Also, cast aside. to reject;
      discard.
    • to shipwreck.
    • to throw away;
      squander:
      He will cast away this money just as he has done in the past.
41. cast back, to refer to something past;
    revert to:
    The composer casts back to his earlier work.
42. cast down, to lower;
    humble.
43. Printing cast off:
    • to discard;
      reject.
    • to let go or let loose, as a vessel from a mooring.
    • [Print.] to determine the quantity of type or space that a given amount of text will occupy when set.
    • Textiles to make (the final stitches) in completing a knitted fabric.
    • to throw (a falcon) off from the fist to pursue game.
44. Textiles cast on, to set (yarn) on a needle in order to form the initial stitches in knitting.
45. cast out, to force out;
    expel;
    eject.
46. cast up:
    • to add up;
      compute.
    • to vomit;
      eject.
    • Scottish Terms [Chiefly Scot.] to turn up;
      appear.

n. 

47. act of casting or throwing.
48. that which is thrown.
49. the distance to which a thing may be cast or thrown.
50. Games
    • a throw of dice.
    • the number rolled.
51. [Angling.]
    • act of throwing a line or net onto the water.
    • a spot for casting;
      a fishing place.
52. Show Business [Theat.] the group of performers to whom parts are assigned;
    players.
53. Sport [Hunting.] a searching of an area for a scent by hounds.
54. a stroke of fortune;
    fortune or lot.
55. a ride offered on one's way;
    lift.
56. the form in which something is made or written;
    arrangement.
57. Metallurgy
    • act of casting or founding.
    • the quantity of metal cast at one time.
58. something formed from a material poured into a mold in a molten or liquid state;
    casting.
59. an impression or mold made from something.
60. Medicine a rigid surgical dressing, usually made of bandage treated with plaster of Paris.
61. outward form;
    appearance.
62. sort;
    kind;
    style.
63. tendency;
    inclination.
64. a permanent twist or turn:
    to have a cast in one's eye.
65. a warp.
66. a slight tinge of some color;
    hue;
    shade:
    A good diamond does not have a yellowish cast.
67. a dash or trace;
    a small amount.
68. Mathematics computation;
    calculation;
    addition.
69. a conjecture;
    forecast.
70. Veterinary Diseases [Zool.] something that is shed, ejected, or cast off or out, as molted skin, a feather, food from a bird's crop, or the coil of sand and waste passed by certain earthworms.
71. Birds [Ornith.] pellet (def. 6).
72. Sport [Falconry.] a pair of hawks put in flight together.
73. Pathology effused plastic matter produced in the hollow parts of various diseased organs.
74. Textiles low-grade, irregular wool.
75. Idioms at a single cast, through a single action or event:
    He bankrupted himself at a single cast.

adj. 

76. Veterinary Diseases (of an animal, esp. a horse) lying in such a position that it is unable to return to its feet without assistance.

• Old Norse kasta to throw
• Middle English casten 1175–1225

cast′a•ble, adj. 
cast′a•bil′i•ty, n. 
Synonyms

• 1. See throw. 
• 63. See turn. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

cast / kɑːst/ verb (casts, casting, cast)(mainly tr)

1. to throw or expel with violence or force
2. to throw off or away: she cast her clothes to the ground
3. to reject or dismiss: he cast the idea from his mind
4. to shed or drop: the snake cast its skin, the horse cast a shoe, the ship cast anchor
5. to cause to appear: to cast a shadow
6. to express (doubts, suspicions, etc) or cause (them) to be felt
7. to direct (a glance, attention, etc): cast your eye over this
8. to place, esp in a violent manner: he was cast into prison
9. (also intr) to throw (a line) into the water
10. to draw or choose (lots)
11. to give or deposit (a vote)
12. to select (actors) to play parts in (a play, film, etc)
13. to shape (molten metal, glass, etc) by pouring or pressing it into a mould
14. to make (an object) by such a process
15. (also intr) often followed by up: to compute (figures or a total)
16. to draw on (a horoscope) details concerning the positions of the planets in the signs of the zodiac at a particular time for interpretation in terms of human characteristics, behaviour, etc
17. to contrive (esp in the phrase cast a spell)
18. to formulate: he cast his work in the form of a chart
19. (also intr) to twist or cause to twist
20. (intransitive) (of birds of prey) to eject from the crop and bill a pellet consisting of the indigestible parts of birds or animals previously eaten
21. to stereotype or electrotype

noun

1. the act of casting or throwing
2. Also called: casting something that is shed, dropped, or egested, such as the coil of earth left by an earthworm
3. another name for pellet4
4. the distance an object is or may be thrown
5. a throw at dice
6. the resulting number shown
7. the act or an instance of casting
8. the wide sweep made by a sheepdog to get behind a flock of sheep or by a hunting dog in search of a scent
9. the actors in a play collectively
10. (as modifier): a cast list
11. an object made of metal, glass, etc that has been shaped in a molten state by being poured or pressed into a mould
12. the mould used to shape such an object
13. form or appearance
14. sort, kind, or style
15. a fixed twist or defect, esp in the eye
16. a distortion of shape
17. a rigid encircling casing, often made of plaster of Paris, for immobilizing broken bones while they heal
18. a slight tinge or trace, as of colour
19. fortune or a stroke of fate

Etymology: 13th Century: from Old Norse kasta