fairy cake
fairy cake — noun
1. a small, light sponge cake that sits inside a pleated paper case and has a thin
a small, light sponge cake that sits inside a pleated paper case and has a thin spread of icing on top — a traditional British teatime treat, often finished with sprinkles, a glacé cherry, or a dusting of sugar.
Mayumi's grandmother baked a batch of fairy cakes for the school bake sale.
bake + fairy cakes for [event]
With a careful hand, Harper spread pink icing over the top of each fairy cake.
collocation: spread icing over a fairy cake
Samir picked up a fairy cake from the plate and took a small bite.
The fairy cakes that Yuna brought to the picnic were gone within ten minutes.
- cupcake
the American equivalent, often larger and topped with piped frosting rather than flat icing
- patty cake
an older British term for the same cake, less common today
- butterfly cake
a fairy cake whose top is cut off, split, and placed back as 'wings' with filling in between
文法句型
a fairy cake
fairy cakes in the plural
用法筆記
In British English, 'fairy cake' refers specifically to a light sponge with a flat, iced top — distinct from the taller, piped-frosting style of the American cupcake. The term is less familiar in the US, where 'cupcake' is standard.
常見錯誤
2. the British name for what is more widely called a 'cupcake' — a very small, roun
the British name for what is more widely called a 'cupcake' — a very small, round cake baked in a cup-shaped paper or foil container, typically finished with a layer of sweet icing or frosting.
Imani asked the baker whether this small iced cake is called a fairy cake or a cupcake.
ask + whether [term A] or [term B]
When Luca moved to London, he learned that a fairy cake is the British name for a cupcake.
the British name for a [equivalent term]
The cookbook explained that a fairy cake is simply the British term for a cupcake.
Eitan's teacher wrote 'fairy cake' on the board and told the class it means the same as cupcake.
- cupcake
the dominant term in American English and increasingly international usage
- patty cake
an older synonym still heard in parts of Britain
文法句型
a fairy cake
known as a fairy cake
用法筆記
This sense is used mainly in cross-dialectal reference and language-teaching contexts to highlight the British–American lexical difference. In everyday British speech, 'fairy cake' is used naturally without comparing it to the word 'cupcake'.