cake

noun

/keɪk/

Idioms

jump to other results

[countable, uncountable] a sweet food made from a mixture of flour, eggs, butter, sugar, etc. that is baked in an oven. Cakes are made in various shapes and sizes and are often decorated, for example with cream or icing.
- a piece/slice of cake
- to make/bake a cake
- a chocolate cake
- a birthday cake
- (British English) a cake tin (= for cooking a cake in)
- (North American English) a cake pan
- a plate of cream cakes
- There's carrot cake for dessert.
- a box of cake mix
see also angel food cake, Christmas cake, fruit cake, sponge cake, wedding cake
Extra Examples
- Everyone cheered as the bride and groom cut the wedding cake.
- He cut her a slice of cake.
- I blew out the candles on my birthday cake.
- Pour the cake mixture into a greased and lined tin.
- She brushed some cake crumbs off her lap.
- Spread the cake with the butter cream.
Topics Fooda1
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- home-made
- moist
- rich
- …
… of cake
- piece
- slice
verb + cake
- eat
- have
- bake
- …
cake + noun
- crumbs
- recipe
- mix
- …
See full entry
[countable] a food mixture that is cooked in a round, flat shape
- potato cakes
see also cattle cake, fishcake

Word OriginMiddle English (denoting a small flat bread roll): of Scandinavian origin; related to Swedish kaka and Danish kage.

Idioms

go/sell like hot cakes

have your cake and eat it (British English)

(also have your cake and eat it too North American English, British English)

to have the advantages of something without its disadvantages; to have both things that are available

the icing on the cake

(North American English also the frosting on the cake)

something extra and not essential that is added to an already good situation or experience and that makes it even better
- It’s an added bonus—the icing on the cake.

a piece of cake

a slice/share of the cake (British English)

(British and North American English a piece/slice/share of the pie)

a share of the available money or benefits that you believe you have a right to
- Scotland is demanding a larger slice of the national cake.

take the cake (especially North American English)

(British English also take the biscuit)

(informal) to be the most surprising, annoying, etc. thing that has happened or that somebody has done

verb

/keɪk/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they cake	/keɪk/ /keɪk/
he / she / it cakes	/keɪks/ /keɪks/
past simple caked	/keɪkt/ /keɪkt/
past participle caked	/keɪkt/ /keɪkt/
-ing form caking	/ˈkeɪkɪŋ/ /ˈkeɪkɪŋ/

jump to other results

[transitive, usually passive] to cover something with a thick layer of something soft that becomes hard when it dries
- be caked with something Her shoes were caked with mud.
- When he ran onstage, his face was caked with make-up.
- be caked in something The cloth was caked in her blood.
[intransitive] if a substance cakes, it becomes hard when it dries

Word OriginMiddle English (denoting a small flat bread roll): of Scandinavian origin; related to Swedish kaka and Danish kage.