cake

American  

[keyk] / keɪk /

noun

1. a sweet, baked, breadlike food, made with or without shortening, and usually containing flour, sugar, baking powder or soda, eggs, and liquid flavoring.

2. a flat, thin mass of bread, especially unleavened bread.

3. pancake; griddlecake.

4. a shaped or molded mass of other food.

   a fish cake.

5. a shaped or compressed mass.

   a cake of soap; a cake of ice.

6. Animal Husbandry. a compacted block of soybeans, cottonseeds, or linseeds from which the oil has been pressed, usually used as a feed or feed supplement for cattle.

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verb (used with object)

caked, caking

1. to form into a crust or compact mass.

verb (used without object)

caked, caking

1. to become formed into a crust or compact mass.

   Synonyms:

   congeal, dry, solidify, harden

idioms

1. take the cake,

   1. to surpass all others, especially in some undesirable quality; be extraordinary or unusual.

      His arrogance takes the cake.

   2. to win first prize.

2. a piece of cake, something easily done.

   She thought her first solo flight was a piece of cake.

cake British  

/ keɪk /

noun

1. a baked food, usually in loaf or layer form, typically made from a mixture of flour, sugar, and eggs

2. a flat thin mass of bread, esp unleavened bread

3. a shaped mass of dough or other food of similar consistency

   a fish cake

4. a mass, slab, or crust of a solidified or compressed substance, as of soap or ice

5. to enjoy both of two desirable but incompatible alternatives

6. informal to be sold very quickly or in large quantities

7. informal something that is easily achieved or obtained

8. informal to surpass all others, esp in stupidity, folly, etc

9. informal the whole or total of something that is to be shared or divided

   the miners are demanding a larger slice of the cake

   that is a fair method of sharing the cake

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verb

1. (tr) to cover with a hard layer; encrust

   the hull was caked with salt

2. to form or be formed into a hardened mass

cake More Idioms  

1. see eat one's cake and have it, too; flat as a pancake; icing on the cake; nutty as a fruitcake; piece of cake; sell like hot cakes; slice of the pie (cake); take the cake.

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Other Word Forms

• cakey adjective
• caky adjective
• noncaking adjective
• uncake verb (used with object)

Etymology

Origin of cake

1200–50; Middle English < Old Norse kaka; akin to Middle English kechel little cake, German Kuchen; cookie

Example Sentences

The stars will attempt hangable festive biscuit decorations, a Christmas pie technical challenge, and a showstopper round that sees the bakers recreate their favourite Peep Show moments in cake form.

From BBC

At Salon, we’ve revisited sweet salads, icebox cakes, tuna melts, baked spaghetti and the classic holiday cheese ball — all familiar flavors, reimagined just enough to feel new.

From Salon

These transitions from private to public cast doubt on Wall Street’s narrative that investors can have their cake and eat it, too.

From The Wall Street Journal

Between them, the machines and humans turn out around seven million wafer bars and 4.5 million tea cakes a year.

From BBC

This year’s most popular recipe wasn’t so much a recipe as a guide to cool, effortless summer drama: the icebox cake.

From Salon

Related Words

• loaf