sponge cake

noun

A light, soft, baked dessert (commonly layered with cream and jam) that is typically made with flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, and has a firm, yet well aerated structure, similar to that of a sea sponge.

“I made a sponge cake the other day. It was a disaster: I forgot the baking powder! It didn't rise!”

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Meanings

nounsponge cake (countable and uncountable, plural sponge cakes)

plural sponge cakes · alternative spongecake

  1. countableuncountableA light, soft, baked dessert (commonly layered with cream and jam) that is typically made with flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, and has a firm, yet well aerated structure, similar to that of a sea sponge.

    I made a sponge cake the other day. It was a disaster: I forgot the baking powder! It didn't rise!

  2. countablefigurativelyinformaluncommonuncountableSomething that is simple or very easy.

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
sponge

Translations

Arabic كَعْكَة إسْفَنْجِيَّة
  • كَعْكَة إسْفَنْجِيَّةtype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Basque bizkotxo
  • bizkotxotype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Bulgarian пандишпа́н
  • пандишпа́н (pandišpán)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Catalan pa de pessic, bescuit
  • pa de pessictype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • bescuittype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Chinese Cantonese 海綿蛋糕 /海绵蛋糕
  • 海綿蛋糕 /海绵蛋糕 (hoi² min⁴ daan⁶ gou¹)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Chinese Mandarin 海綿蛋糕 /海绵蛋糕
  • 海綿蛋糕 /海绵蛋糕 (hǎimián dàngāo)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Dutch biscuitgebak
  • biscuitgebaktype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Esperanto spongkuko, spongokuko
  • spongkukotype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • spongokukotype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Estonian keeks
  • keekstype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Finnish sokerikakku
  • sokerikakkutype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
French sponge cake, génoise
  • sponge caketype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • génoisetype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
German Biskuit, Biskuitkuchen
  • Biskuittype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • Biskuitkuchentype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • Biskuitmassetype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Greek παντεσπάνι
  • παντεσπάνι (pantespáni)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Hebrew עוּגַת סְפוֹג
  • עוּגַת סְפוֹג (ugát s'fog)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Hungarian piskóta
  • piskótatype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Icelandic svampterta
  • svamptertatype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Indonesian kue sponge
  • kue spongetype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Irish císte spúinse
  • císte spúinsetype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Italian pandispagna, pan di Spagna
  • pandispagnatype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • pan di Spagnatype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Japanese スポンジケーキ, スポンジ生地
  • スポンジケーキ (suponji kēki)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • スポンジ生地 (suponji kiji)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Korean 스펀지 케이크
  • 스펀지 케이크 (seupeonji keikeu)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Lithuanian biskvitas
  • biskvitastype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Norwegian Bokmål sukkerbrød
  • sukkerbrødtype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Persian کیک اسفنجی
  • کیک اسفنجی (keyk-e esfanji)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Polish biszkopt, ciasto biszkoptowe
  • biszkopttype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • ciasto biszkoptowetype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • biskwittype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Portuguese pão de ló, bolo esponjoso
  • pão de lótype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • bolo esponjosotype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Romanian chec, pandișpan
  • chectype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • pandișpantype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Russian бискви́т
  • бискви́т (biskvít)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Spanish bizcocho
  • bizcochotype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Swedish sockerkaka
  • sockerkakatype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Thai เค้กฟองน้ำ, สปันจ์เค้ก
  • เค้กฟองน้ำ (kéek fɔɔng-nám)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • สปันจ์เค้ก (sà-bpan kéek)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • สาลี่ (sǎa-lîi)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Turkish pandispanya, sünger kek
  • pandispanyatype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • sünger kektype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Ukrainian біскві́т, біскві́тне ті́сто
  • біскві́т (biskvít)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • біскві́тне ті́сто (biskvítne tísto)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Vietnamese bánh bông lan
  • bánh bông lantype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Welsh teisen sbwnj, teisen felen
  • teisen sbwnjtype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • teisen felentype of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Yiddish לעקעך, צוקער־לעקעך
  • לעקעך (lekekh)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
  • צוקער־לעקעך (tsuker-lekekh)type of soft cake made from flour, sugar, baking powder and eggs, with a spongy structure
Cite this entry
APA

sponge cake. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sponge%20cake

MLA

“sponge cake.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sponge%20cake. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “sponge cake,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sponge%20cake.

Source: sponge cake on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.