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
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
After winning the offseason free agent sweepstakes for both Ohtani and starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, a cakewalk in the NL West was expected. Tony Blengino, Forbes, 16 Oct. 2024 Yes, but: Seattle is playoffs-bound, too, so this won't be a cakewalk. Maxwell Millington, Axios, 3 Oct. 2024 Directional shapes float and carve well, but riding switch isn’t a cakewalk. Drew Zieff, Outside Online, 27 Sep. 2024 The joy in the thing seemed to be in what Republicans assumed was a cakewalk to victory. Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 16 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for cakewalk 

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 5 Nov. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on cakewalk

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