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Synonyms

beefcake

American  
[beef-kayk] / ˈbifˌkeɪk /

noun

Informal.
  1. photographs of nearly nude young men in magazines or the like, posed to display their muscular bodies.


beefcake British  
/ ˈbiːfˌkeɪk /

noun

  1. slang men displayed for their muscular bodies, esp in photographs Compare cheesecake

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of beefcake

1945–50; beef + cake, modeled on cheesecake


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Only Elordi, variously treated like beefcake and brooder, seems lost trying to square Julius’ early vulnerability with the final act’s hopeful romance.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 25, 2025

March’s Netflix Originals include Chiwetel Ejiofor’s directorial debut, Lukas Dhont’s controversial “Girl,” and the star-studded beefcake spectacle of “Triple Frontier.”

From Salon ● Mar. 4, 2019

Playing Judah, Heston reached his career pinnacle as a sweaty symbol of virtuous heroic masochism and super-masculine beefcake with a halo.

From New York Times ● Aug. 18, 2016

So these are the stakes: if you write something online, at some point it may read back to the whole world, and potentially one very mustachioed beefcake.

From The Verge ● Jun. 25, 2016

“You are awesome! You are awesome!” said a twentysomething beefcake as he crossed in front of me at a red light.

From Slate ● Apr. 27, 2015

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