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Dictionary

Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.

piece of cake en · NOUN

Pronunciation

  • (US) audio
  • /ˈpiːsə(v)ˈkeɪk/
  • (Australia) audio

Etymology

Attested since 1936, originally in American English. Possibly from cakewalk, or the notion of facility that derives from many cakes having agreeable tastes, and hence being ‘easy’ to consume. Compare French être du gâteau (literally “to be a cake”), être de la tarte (literally “to be a pie”), both meaning "to be easy, to be a piece of cake".

Meanings

  1. (idiomatic) A job, task or other activity that is pleasant or, by extension, easy or simple.
    • Sure, no problem. It'll be a piece of cake.
    • Dennis's enthusiasm was difficult for Ryan to manage, but Javier's angsty Victorian-era man-pain is a piece of cake. 2014, Dominique Frost, In the Blaze of His Hungers, →ISBN:
    • I just bought a ramune soda myself! 😂︎ I opened it without spilling a drop! Piece of cake 2022, Hitomi Takano, translated by Kumar Sivasubramanian, “Final Chapter To Be Continued”, in My Boy, volume 9, New York, N.Y.: Vertical Comics, →ISBN, page 156:
  2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see piece, cake.

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
pieces of cake Number=Plur lexicographic

Relateds

easy as pie

Synonyms

easy pickings · layup · plane sailing · snap · walk in the park · open and shut case · cinch · piece of piss · breeze · no-brainer · cakewalk · cakewalk · picnic · breeze · gimme · bagatelle · plain sailing · walkover · piece of cake · duck soup · low-hanging fruit · walk in the park · waltz · walkover · cinch · doddle · doddle · slam dunk · child's play · cake and gingerbread · duck soup · doss · child's play

Translations (58)

es bicoca (simple or easy job) · nl eitje (simple or easy job) · ms kacang (simple or easy job) · de Zuckerschlecken (simple or easy job) · tr çocuk oyuncağı (simple or easy job) · tr çantada keklik (simple or easy job) · es güira (simple or easy job) · fr nougat (simple or easy job) · sh mȁčjī kȁšalj (simple or easy job) · pt mamão com açúcar (simple or easy job) · de Kinderspiel (simple or easy job) · pt moleza (simple or easy job) · is barnaleikur (simple or easy job) · cs brnkačka (simple or easy job) · es papa (simple or easy job) · ar لُقْمَة سَائِغَة (simple or easy job) · nl fluitje van een cent (simple or easy job) · it cosa da niente (simple or easy job) · ar بَسِيطَة (simple or easy job) · sv baggis (simple or easy job) · fi lastenleikki (simple or easy job) · da barneleg (simple or easy job) · sv barnlek (simple or easy job) · ja お茶の子 (simple or easy job) · fi helppo nakki (simple or easy job) · es papita para el loro (simple or easy job) · et käkitegu (simple or easy job) · pt mel na chupeta (simple or easy job) · it gioco da ragazzi (simple or easy job) · it come bere un bicchier d'acqua (simple or easy job) · it gioco da bambini (simple or easy job) · es huevo (simple or easy job) · sk bufet (simple or easy job) · de Spaziergang (simple or easy job) · cs hračka (simple or easy job) · cmn 小菜一碟 (simple or easy job) · nl makkie (simple or easy job) · es papaya (simple or easy job) · is ekkert mál (simple or easy job) · nb barnemat (simple or easy job) · hy խաղ ու պար (simple or easy job) · ko(simple or easy job) · es coser y cantar (simple or easy job) · hu gyerekjáték (simple or easy job) · sh ма̏чјӣ ка̏шаљ (simple or easy job) · cmn 小事一樁 /小事一桩 (simple or easy job) · es papayita (simple or easy job) · nn barnemat (simple or easy job) · da barnemad (simple or easy job) · pt canja (simple or easy job) · ca bufar i fer ampolles (simple or easy job) · ro floare la ureche (simple or easy job) · cmn 非常容易的事 (simple or easy job) · pl bułka z masłem (simple or easy job) · cmn 易如反掌 (simple or easy job) · es pan comido (simple or easy job) · fr jeu d'enfant (simple or easy job) · de Pillepalle (simple or easy job)