## Etymology
A compound of cake + walk, from a 19th-century African American contest in which the couple with the most graceful strutting walk won a cake; the 'easy task' sense derives from the leisurely strut.

## AI Etymology
Cakewalk is a noun meaning "something easily accomplished; a strutting dance of African American origin". Historically, it is a compound of cake + walk, from a 19th-century African American contest in which the couple with the most graceful strutting walk won a cake; the 'easy task' sense derives from the leisurely strut. The visible construction is part of the etymology: cakewalk is not just an unanalyzed simple word. The semantic history matters here: the earlier use is the starting point, and the modern sense, "something easily accomplished; a strutting dance of African American origin", is the later or specialized English value. Close English family members include cake, and walk.

## Topics
- Art & Music

markdown

cakewalk

Meanings

Thesaurus

Etymology

Topics

External links

Keyboard Shortcuts

General

Send feedback