What Does the Expression “Piece of Cake” Mean and Where Did the Idiom Come From?

Photo of author

Karen Hill

Nothing could be more immediately rewarding than a piece of cake, and to indicate delight, we sometimes say a chore was a “piece of cake.”

The expression first appears in English literature in a 1936 Ogden Nash (1902-1971) poem called “Primrose Path.”

During World War II, the phrase was adopted by British pilots to describe a target that was easy and fun to attack or destroy.

It was from there that the expression graduated into everyday English.

Related Posts

  1. Where does the word “cake” come from and What does cake mean?
  2. What Does the Expression “Have Your Cake and Eat it Too” Mean and Where Did the Idiom Come From?
  3. Why Does Touching a Tooth Filling With a Piece of Silver Foil Cause Pain and How Is the Nerve Stimulated?
  4. Where Is the Biggest Piece of Ice on Earth?
  5. Where Is the Remotest Piece of Land on Earth?
  6. Which piece of land was bought for $1 Billion?