take the cake

take the cake
verb
rank first; used often in a negative context
-

He takes the cake for chutzpah!

• Hypernyms: ↑win
• Verb Frames:
-

Something ——s

-

Somebody ——s

* * *

phrasal
: to carry off the prize originally in a cakewalk : rank first

takes the cake for sheer weight of national holidays — twenty-seven — New Yorker

for … pure cheek that takes the cake — Sydney (Australia) Bulletin

* * *

take the cake (slang)
1. To carry off the honours
2. To be the ultimate in idiocy or intolerable behaviour (ironic)
3. To top it all
• • •
Main Entry: ↑cake

* * *

take the cake mainly american phrase
to be the worst, most shocking, or most annoying example of something. The usual British expression is take the biscuit

I’ve heard some ridiculous excuses before, but that takes the cake.

Thesaurus: to make someone feel shocked or surprisedsynonym
Main entry: cake

* * *

I
surpass or exceed all others

of all the hard-hearted women, she takes the cake

II
informal (of a person or incident) be the most remarkable or foolish of their kind

* * *

take the cake
chiefly US : to win the prize in a contest
— used to describe something that is extremely surprising, foolish, annoying, etc.

You've done some silly things, but this one really takes the cake! [=(Brit) takes the biscuit] [=this is the silliest thing you have ever done]

• • •
Main Entry: ↑cake

* * *

take the ˈcake idiom
(especially NAmE) (BrE also take the ˈbiscuit) (informal) to be the most surprising, annoying, etc. thing that has happened or that sb has done
Main entry: ↑cakeidiom

Useful english dictionary. 2012.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • take the cake — Ⅰ. ► take the biscuit (or chiefly N. Amer. cake) informal be the most remarkable or foolish of its kind. Main Entry: ↑biscuit Ⅱ. ► take the cake see take the biscuit at BISCUIT(Cf. ↑biscuity) …   English terms dictionary

  • take the cake — If something takes the cake, it is the best and takes the honours …   The small dictionary of idiomes

  • Take the Cake — infobox television show name = Take the Cake caption = format = Game show runtime = 60 minutes (w/ commercials) creator = starring = Joe Clair Toccara [cite web|url=http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news.aspx?id=20070620bet01|title=Endemol USA and… …   Wikipedia

  • take the cake — {v. phr.}, {slang} 1. To take the first prize; be the best; rank first. * /Mr. Jones takes the cake as a storyteller./ 2. To be the limit; to be the worst; have a lot of nerve; be a very rude, bold, or surprising action. * /I let Jack borrow my… …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • take the cake — {v. phr.}, {slang} 1. To take the first prize; be the best; rank first. * /Mr. Jones takes the cake as a storyteller./ 2. To be the limit; to be the worst; have a lot of nerve; be a very rude, bold, or surprising action. * /I let Jack borrow my… …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • take\ the\ cake — v. phr. slang 1. To take the first prize; be the best; rank first. Mr. Jones takes the cake as a storyteller. 2. To be the limit; to be the worst; have a lot of nerve; be a very rude, bold, or surprising action. I let Jack borrow my baseball and… …   Словарь американских идиом

  • take the cake — verb a) To be especially good or outstanding. Thanks! You guys take the cake. b) To be particularly bad, objectionable, or egregious. Once the party was over, everyone agreed that Elizabeth and her Har …   Wiktionary

  • take the cake — is the worst or the weirdest or the funniest etc.    Of all the people I ve met, you take the cake! You re the wildest! …   English idioms

  • take the cake — mainly American to be the worst, most shocking, or most annoying example of something. The usual British expression is take the biscuit I ve heard some ridiculous excuses before, but that takes the cake …   English dictionary

  • take the cake — see take the biscuit at biscuit. → cake …   English new terms dictionary

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