cheesecake

American  

[cheez-keyk] / ˈtʃizˌkeɪk /

noun

• cheesecakes
  plural

1. Also cheese cake a cake having a firm custardlike texture, made with cream cheese, cottage cheese, or both, and sometimes topped with a jamlike fruit mixture.

2. Also called leg art.  Informal. photographs featuring scantily clothed attractive women.

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cheesecake British  

/ ˈtʃiːzˌkeɪk /

noun

1. a rich tart with a biscuit base, filled with a mixture of cream cheese, cream, sugar, and often sultanas, sometimes having a fruit topping

2. slang women displayed for their sex appeal, as in photographs in magazines, newspapers, or films Compare beefcake

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• cheesecakes
  plural

Etymology

Origin of cheesecake

1400–50; 1930–35, cheesecake for def. 2; late Middle English chese kake; see cheese ¹, cake

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cheesecake cheesecakes

Other examples include combinations like purple sweet potato ice cream, cheesecake with carrot compote, or chocolate bars loaded with salty potato chips.

From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2026

In recent weeks, the vegetable has been popping up all over social media in sweet treat form - as an ingredient in everything from cookies and ice cream to cheesecake.

From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2026

Finally, you can never go wrong with Porto’s, which sells an array of cakes including chocolate raspberry, Parisian chocolate, mango mousse, strawberry cheesecake and more.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 18, 2026

You can add cocoa powder, chocolate chips, strawberries or anything you desire to the mix before baking to craft your favorite cheesecake flavor.

From Salon ● Apr. 28, 2026

“You don’t understand,” Celia said as she cut cheesecake with fresh raspberries for dessert.

From "The House of the Scorpion" by Nancy Farmer

Eve Babitz — who was a close friend of 93-year-old Deanne Mencher, who still makes the cheesecakes at Dan Tana’s — was known for socializing at the restaurant.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026

Mukhopadhyay's cheesecake is a far cry from cheesecakes we are familiar with today that are made with soft, satiny dollops of cream cheese.

From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2023

The comedy is inherent, onstage as on TV, in requiring folks from Chichester and Wembley to follow skeletal recipes for obscure Eastern European cheesecakes with unpronounceable names.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 20, 2023

I spent most of my baking life avoiding cheesecakes, intimidated by springform pans and water baths.

From Salon ● Feb. 2, 2023

We had sometimes cheesecakes, and sometimes tarts; with very frequently pound-cake and jumbles; and sometimes we had even little mince-pies, and oyster-patties.

From Stories for Helen by Eliza Leslie