cakewalk
/ˈkeɪkwɔːk/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈkeɪkwɔːk/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈkāk-ˌwȯk How to pronounce cakewalk (audio)/ (ame, mw)
cakewalk — 名詞
1. a task, game, or other situation that feels so easy that success comes with very
輕而易舉
非常容易做到或贏得的事
a task, game, or other situation that feels so easy that success comes with very little effort.
After one rehearsal, the school play became a cakewalk for Mei.
排過一次彩排後，那齣校園劇對 Mei 來說就變得輕而易舉了。
pattern: become a cakewalk for someone
With no defenders nearby, scoring the final goal was a cakewalk.
附近沒有後衛時，踢進最後一球簡直輕而易舉。
be a cakewalk in sport
Compared with last year's exam, this one was a cakewalk.
跟去年的考試相比，這次簡直是輕而易舉。
Finding parking at dawn was a cakewalk before the festival crowds arrived.
在節慶人潮湧入前，清晨找車位還算輕而易舉。
- struggle
emphasizes that real effort is needed
- uphill battle
suggests progress is difficult from the start
文法句型
be a cakewalk
turn into a cakewalk
make something a cakewalk
用法筆記
Usually follows be and often appears when someone compares an easy task or contest with a harder one. It often suggests the result felt almost guaranteed.
常見錯誤
2. a past American entertainment contest in which Black performers did showy walkin
競步舞比賽
昔日美國黑人爭蛋糕的舞步比賽
a past American entertainment contest in which Black performers did showy walking dance steps, sometimes for a cake prize.
The museum's poster described a cakewalk where dancers competed for a decorated cake.
博物館海報介紹了一場競步舞比賽，舞者會爭奪裝飾好的蛋糕。
historical contest with a cake prize
In the play, actors recreated a cakewalk from a nineteenth-century fair.
在那齣戲裡，演員重現了一場十九世紀市集上的競步舞比賽。
The historian explained that a cakewalk once offered a prize to the best couple.
歷史學家解釋說，cakewalk 這種競步舞比賽曾把蛋糕頒給表現最好的舞伴。
Old newspapers advertised a cakewalk at the church fundraiser downtown.
舊報紙曾刊登市中心教會募款活動的競步舞比賽廣告。
文法句型
hold a cakewalk
enter a cakewalk
advertise a cakewalk
用法筆記
Used for the event itself, not the dance style or the music. It belongs mainly in historical discussions of American performance and Black cultural history.
3. the dance style that grew out of that contest, known for proud posture and patte
競步舞
源自該比賽的舞蹈形式
the dance style that grew out of that contest, known for proud posture and patterned walking steps.
The dance teacher showed us the high steps of a cakewalk.
舞蹈老師示範了競步舞裡高抬腳的步法。
cakewalk steps as dance feature
Their stage routine borrowed the proud posture of the cakewalk.
他們的舞台編排借用了競步舞那種挺胸擺姿的神態。
A silent film clip preserved the bouncing rhythm of the cakewalk.
一段默片片段保留了競步舞彈跳般的節奏感。
For the parade scene, Lena practiced the cakewalk in front of a mirror.
為了遊行那一幕，Lena 對著鏡子練習競步舞。
文法句型
dance the cakewalk
practice the cakewalk
cakewalk steps
用法筆記
This sense names the dance itself. Distinguish it from sense 2, which is the full event, and from sense 4, which names the music.
4. a piece of music written to go with that dance or to copy its style.
競步舞曲
為該舞蹈寫成的樂曲
a piece of music written to go with that dance or to copy its style.
A pianist opened the recital with a bright cakewalk by Joplin.
一位鋼琴家以一首 Joplin 的競步舞曲為獨奏會開場。
a cakewalk by a named composer
The band rehearsed the cakewalk before adding the dancers.
樂團在加入舞者前先排練了那首競步舞曲。
Our teacher played a cakewalk so we could hear its steady bounce.
老師播放了一首競步舞曲，讓我們聽出它穩定的彈跳感。
The archive holds several cakewalks written for early theater shows.
檔案館收藏了幾首為早期劇場演出寫的競步舞曲。
文法句型
play a cakewalk
write a cakewalk
a cakewalk by + composer
用法筆記
Use this sense for a musical composition or performance. It does not refer to the contest itself or to people dancing the steps.