好有意思的问题哈哈，从翻译与跨文化的角度来说，这是外来语在译入语文化中的意义衍生。
根据 Merriam-Webster Dictionary 【韦氏大词典】 ， barbecue有以下三种定义：
1: to roast or broil (food, such as meat) on a rack or revolving spit over or before a source of heat (such as hot coals or a gas flame)
在架子上或在热源(如热煤或煤气火焰)上旋转烤肉架上烤或烤(食物，如肉)。
例如：
barbecuing chicken for dinner
2 : to prepare (food, such as beef, pork, or chicken) by seasoning (as with a marinade, a barbecue sauce, or a rub) and cooking usually slowly and with exposure to low heat and to smoke
用调味料(如腌料、烧烤酱或揉搓)来准备(食物，如牛肉、猪肉或鸡肉)，通常用小火熏制缓慢烹饪。
例如：
Barbecuing brisket begins late Thursday night so they can start serving at noon Friday.
3 informal : to subject (someone) to harsh criticism or ridicule
非正式用法：使(某人)受到严厉的批评或嘲笑。
例如：
Republicans now talk of winning 15 to 20 new seats in November, a prospect that has the faithful and the financiers wanting to barbecue Clinton for at least a few more weeks.
前两个义项在中文语境的认知传播远远比最后一个要广泛的多，本来所指的是一种「烧烤」活动。而其「烤炙」的含义，颇有一种「受到折磨」或「大难临头」的意味，在中文互联网语境中，被用来借代一种「令人尴尬的完蛋了的死亡场景hh」。
在传播的过程中，其原来的形式也发生了变化，从barbecue到BBQ到芭比Q，词汇的形式和内涵已经完全发生了转移，俨然是一种跨文化创新的标准范式了hh（just kidding!）。
