Madeira cake
1
5.6
- noun
- UK
:
pastel de Madeira
- At the party, I baked a delicious Madeira cake for everyone to share.
Examples
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The cake is great with tea, but do try a slice with a little sweet or fortified wine if the mood takes you—that's why it's called Madeira cake, after all.
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I could pass on the Edmonds recipe for Madeira cake, but to be honest, it's just a basic Madeira cake.
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I love Madeira cake.
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I could pass on the Edmonds recipe for Madeira cake, but to be honest, it's just a basic Madeira cake.
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Then, as the smell of baking filled the house, I realized that I hadn't eaten a homemade Madeira cake for over 30 years and, what's more, it really is a very good, classic cake.
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She served a slice of Madeira cake alongside her favorite dessert wine.
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I love Madeira cake because of its rich flavor and firm texture.
Synonyms
A rich sponge cake often served with a glass of wine
How Dense
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound 'Madeira cake' is compositionally built from 'Madeira' (the fortified wine/place) + 'cake', so a learner who knows both constituents can infer it denotes a cake associated with or flavored by Madeira. This origin/flavor naming pattern is common and predictable in English, making the meaning readily derivable for a B1 learner.
Etymology
Madeira cake is named after the sweet wine called Madeira from the island of Madeira, because people long ago often ate a slice of cake with a glass of that wine. That's why the name links the cake to the wine and why this plain, firm sponge is still often served with tea or a glass of wine.