🎂 Frosting/Icing on the Cake: Sweeten Your Speak with Extra Advantages 🍰
Frosting/Icing on the cake, the - An extra advantage or additional benefit. This term refers to the sweet creamy topping of a cake and has been transferred to figurative use since the mid-1900s. A book review in The Listener used it: “All this theology is icing on the cake” (April 3, 1969; cited by the OED).
Related and Similar Terms
- Cherry on top: An additional perk or another positive aspect that makes something even better.
- Gravy: Additional, unexpected benefits.
- The pièce de résistance: The best, most outstanding, or most excellent part of something.
- Bells and whistles: Extra features that make something more attractive but aren’t essential.
- Gilding the lily: To add unnecessary ornamentation to something that is already beautiful or perfect.
Synonyms
- Bonus
- Extra treat
- Perk
- Added advantage
Antonyms
- Necessary evil
- Burden
- Drawback
- Downside
Humor-Filled Quotes
- “Getting a promotion is great. Getting one with a bigger office? Well, that’s just the icing on the cake!”
- “Kids, we’re having pizza for dinner! And for dessert, your mom made her famous milkshake. Icing on the cake!”
Proverbs
- “A stitch in time saves nine.” (Taking care of something timely usually comes with extra benefits, although it might be stretching from cake to thread a bit!)
- “Good things come to those who wait.” (When you wait, sometimes, you’ll get that extra special bonus.)
Literature, Movies, and Songs
- Literature: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll — with quirky, whimsical delights, everything in Wonderland might seem dressed with icing!
- Books: Eat Cake by Jeanne Ray — this novel revolves around life, love, and cake-making!
- Songs: “Sugar, Sugar” by The Archies — Nothing speaks ‘icing on the cake’ like metaphorical sugary sweetness in a catchy tune.
- Movies: Matilda — Remember Bruce B. chowing through chocolate cake? That victory slice was just the beginning!
🍰 Quizzes: Sweeten Your Knowledge
### What's another way to say 'icing on the cake'?
- [x] Cherry on top
- [ ] Spinach on the salad
- [ ] Clock on the wall
- [ ] Socks in the drawer
> **Explanation:** "Cherry on top" is synonymous with 'icing on the cake.' Adding a finishing touch, just like an extra benefit.
### Which phrase indicates an extra bonus or unexpected benefit?
- [ ] Core of the apple
- [x] Icing on the cake
- [ ] Bread and cheese
- [ ] Rock in the shoe
> **Explanation:** "Icing on the cake" indicates an extra bonus that makes a good situation even better.
### True or False: The phrase "icing on the cake" originates from the 1800s.
- [ ] True
- [x] False
> **Explanation:** It became figuratively used more generally since the mid-1900s, but hey, icing and cakes have known each other for centuries!
### What's the opposite of 'icing on the cake'?
- [ ] Extra sprinkles
- [ ] Whipped cream
- [ ] Sandwich filler
- [x] Necessary evil
> **Explanation:** A "necessary evil" is something that is undesirable yet unavoidable, much unlike the delightful bonus of icing!
Until we meet again, may all your endeavors come with a little extra sweetness, adding zest and joy to whatever you undertake. 🍰
— Penny Punmasterson
