Modul 4: Idiom 12: Piece of Cake
Video 01
Piece of Cake
Hi. Let’s take a look at the Idiom, ‘Piece of Cake.’ What does this mean? When something is described as a ‘piece of cake’ it means that that particular task or activity is easy to do.
So what is the origin of this idiom?
The idea of cake being thought of as ‘easy’ dates back to the 1870s on American slave plantations. Slave owners would throw events and make their slaves participate in a ‘cakewalk’ which was a dance that imitated their slave owners who had huge, showy gestures. So, this was an imitation competition. The slave owners thought their slaves admired them – wow, you’re so great! – , but for the slaves, it was just mockery: making fun of. The couple or group that did the best cakewalk would be awarded a piece of cake. The prize cake then became known to slaves as something easy to get. They just had to mock – make fun of – their slave owners in a dance that the slave owners thought glorified them- they thought it made them look good.
Take a look at our illustration.
We can see a chef holding a plate. What is on the plate? It is a piece of cake. Does it look like the chef had a hard time making it? No. The chef looks unfazed by it like it wasn’t hard to make at all. This was an easy bake for him. Making the piece of cake was a piece of cake!
Here are some examples before we go to the concept questions…
“Do you know what’s a piece of cake? Baking cupcakes.”
“I had my second driving lesson today. I don’t know why I was worried, it’s a piece of cake.”
“You would think that running for half a mile would be a piece of cake but I’m very unfit.”
“Mum said that making dinner would be a piece of cake but I am really struggling -it’s really hard for me.”
“I was putting off writing that essay but it was a piece of cake!”
Great.
Let’s look at some situations and check your understanding:
- Ed is a scientist. He helps his daughter with her physics homework. For him, it is a piece of cake. Is this right? Yes. Ed has been to university to become a scientist. School-level science homework would be very easy for him.
- It was Matt’s first day of work since leaving school. “This job will be a piece of cake,” he thought to himself. Was Matt right? No. He has a lot to learn about his new job. It will take him time and practice to get his new job right.
- Tiger Woods played in his local neighbourhood golf tournament and won. Was it a piece of cake for him? Yes. Tiger Woods is a world-class golfer. Beating novices, people who are new to the sport, would be very easy for him.
- Chesca was almost one year old when she started to walk. Was walking a piece of cake for her? No. Babies find it hard to balance when they take their first steps.
- A world-class runner won the London, Paris and New York marathons all in the same year. Was that a piece of cake for him? No. Even though he’s an expert runner, winning all three races in the same year would be incredibly hard.
Great. Now go and practise. See you soon.