Cakewalk Definition

kākwôk

cakewalks

noun

An elaborate step or walk formerly performed by blacks in the South competing for the prize of a cake.

Webster's New World

Something easily accomplished, won, etc.

Webster's New World

A strutting dance developed from this.

Webster's New World

The music for this dance.

American Heritage

A contest in which cake was offered for the best dancers.

Wiktionary

Synonyms:

verb

To do a cakewalk.

Webster's New World

To achieve or accomplish something easily.

American Heritage

To perform a strutting dance.

American Heritage

Other Word Forms of Cakewalk

Singular:

cakewalk

Plural:

cakewalks

Originally a form of dance that white masters had their slaves perform for them and their audiences as entertainment. The slaveowners considered the spectacle extremely amusing since the dances derived from sophisticated white European aristocracy. As such, slaveowners dressed the slaves in costumes of exaggerated finery, like ridiculously tall tophats and flashy striped pants, and taught the slaves variations of the original dance steps designed as highly comical parodies. Audiences selected their favorites, and the slaves who performed most entertainingly for their masters were rewarded with a piece of cake.

From Wiktionary

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