Uscatul

Uscatul is a Romanian term that designates the dried state or the act of drying of materials, especially in agricultural and culinary contexts. It describes things dried by air or heat, such as herbs, fruits, or meat. In some regional dialects and older texts, it may also refer to dried plant matter used as fodder or fuel. In contemporary standard Romanian, dried products are more commonly referred to as produse uscate or as compounds like fruct uscat and carne uscată.

The word derives from the verb a usca (to dry). The form uscatul is the masculine singular definite noun, formed by attaching the definite article suffix -ul to the masculine singular stem. This pattern is typical in Romanian noun formation for words built from verbs.

Uscatul is more often encountered in regional speech, historical texts, or folklore than in formal modern language. It is used in descriptions of traditional drying methods, such as sun-drying or oven drying, and in references to dried culinary ingredients or dried plant matter used in rural economies.

Related terms include fruct uscat (dried fruit), carne uscată (dried meat), and uscarea (the act of drying).