cakewalk

noun

cake·​walk ˈkāk-ˌwȯk How to pronounce cakewalk (audio)
1
a
: a one-sided contest : an easy victory
In states and localities across America, good times are making for reelection cakewalks.Douglas Foster
b
: an easy task
… it's no cakewalk to raise a family on two part-time salaries, even for a little while.Belinda Luscombe
2
: an African American entertainment having a cake as prize for the most accomplished steps and figures in walking
3
: a stage dance developed from walking steps and figures typically involving a high prance with backward tilt
cakewalk intransitive verb
cakewalker noun

Examples of cakewalk in a Sentence

She expected the election to be a cakewalk. Reducing the state budget is not going to be a cakewalk.
Recent Examples on the Web Compared to that, Stadium 1 at Indian Wells was a cakewalk. Noah Goldberg, Los Angeles Times, 15 Mar. 2024 Elevated by Michael Giacchino's stunningly atmospheric score, The Batman intertwines a gritty Sherlock Holmes-esque narrative with hold-your-breath action segments that make its lengthy runtime a cakewalk (the batmobile chase scene alone is worth pressing play). Dennis Perkins, EW.com, 17 Jan. 2024 Given Mitty’s dominance this season, anything less than a cakewalk for the No. 1 team in the nation would be stunning. Nathan Canilao, The Mercury News, 14 Feb. 2024 Though their 13-1 record suggests a cakewalk, Oakland scuffled through the first part of the season, even suffering a 31-point loss at New England. Nate Davis, USA TODAY, 30 Jan. 2024 Initially, the job appears to be a cakewalk until Daley discovers a peculiar secret: The artifacts within the exhibits come to life once the sun goes down. Devin Nealy, EW.com, 16 Oct. 2023 With all the expectations and hopes now pinned on Ohtani, helping the Dodgers win a World Series championship may be a cakewalk by comparison. Teresa Watanabe, Los Angeles Times, 29 Dec. 2023 This wasn’t the offensive explosion from the 59-14 cakewalk of a week earlier, nor was this a Cal program built on defense. Michael Casagrande | McAsagrande@al.com, al, 10 Sep. 2023 Gradually, Juneteenth transformed into a grand holiday when high-stepping parades, beauty pageants, and cakewalks were as likely to be included in the ceremonies as preaching and remembering the trials of enslavement. Jessica B. Harris, Southern Living, 7 June 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cakewalk.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1863, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of cakewalk was in 1863

Dictionary Entries Near cakewalk

Cite this Entry

“Cakewalk.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cakewalk. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

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