OAST (O. Eng. ást, cf. Dutch eest, kiln; the Teutonic root is aidh- "to burn"; the pre-Teutonic idh- is seen in Latin aestus, "heat," aestas, "summer," Gr. αἶθος, "burning heat"), a kiln, particularly one used for drying hops; the word usually appears in the term "oast-house," a building containing several of such kilns (see Hop). Oast is also sometimes used of a kiln used for drying tobacco.