What is the difference between a cook and a cooker?
There is often confusion between the meanings of the two words “cook” and “cooker”. However, they refer to different things. A cook is a person and a cooker is a device for cooking. However, in British English “cooker” is a term that is used interchangeably. This is not so in American English and this is why there is confusion about when to use the terms. In American English a cooker is a stove or a range.
The following sentence is not correct:
My friend is an exceptional cooker.
It should be:
My friend is an exceptional cook.
Examples of the correct usage of “cooker” can be seen in the following sentences:
I am thinking of buying a gas cooker.
A cooker is a necessity in every kitchen.
The word “cook” can be used as a noun or a verb. As a noun it means a person who prepares food and as a verb it means the act of preparing food.
Examples of the word used as a verb are:
The food is not cooked very well.
He loves to cook chicken.
In British English there is an additional meaning for the word “cooker”. It can refer to something that is easy to cook. A fruit, for example, could be a cooker.