a piece of cake

a piece of cake — idiom

1. used to say that a task takes almost no effort, often because the speaker has th

1.idiomB2
Definition

used to say that a task takes almost no effort, often because the speaker has the right skill or because the work turns out far less demanding than expected.

Example

For a chef like Marco, chopping ten onions in two minutes was a piece of cake.

subject + be + a piece of cake (predicate idiom)

Mia was nervous about the driving test, but the parallel parking turned out to be a piece of cake.

turn out + to be + a piece of cake

Common collocations
  • absolutely a piece of cake
  • feel like a piece of cake
  • turn out to be a piece of cake
  • a piece of cake for someone
Synonyms
  • a breeze

    very informal; same meaning, often used by younger speakers

  • child's play

    stresses that even a child could do it; often slightly dismissive

  • a cinch

    informal American English; emphasizes a guaranteed easy result

  • easy as pie

    informal; interchangeable in friendly conversation

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

[task] + be + a piece of cake

Usage Note

Almost always used as a predicate after the verb 'be' (or 'feel like', 'seem'). Very rarely modifies a noun before it. Belongs to informal speech and friendly writing; avoid in formal reports.

Common Mistakes

I did a piece of cake job today.
The job was a piece of cake today.
the idiom is a predicate noun phrase, not a modifier before another noun.
The exam ate a piece of cake.
The exam was a piece of cake.
the idiom is not a verb phrase; pair it with 'be', 'feel like', or 'seem'.

Etymology

English

The phrase grew out of early twentieth-century English, where small cakes were handed out as easy prizes at fairs and in school games — winning one took little effort. American writers in the 1930s, including the poet Ogden Nash, helped spread the figurative use, and by the Second World War British Royal Air Force pilots were using it as slang for a mission that posed no real challenge.