submitted 2 months ago by Binette@lemmy.ml to c/asklemmy@lemmy.ml

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So according to Merriam Webster bread is: a usually baked and leavened food made of a mixture whose basic constituent is flour or meal

And cake is: A: a breadlike food made from a dough or batter that is usually fried or baked in small flat shapes and is often unleavened B: a sweet baked food made from a dough or thick batter usually containing flour and sugar and often shortening, eggs, and a raising agent (such as baking powder)

And yet some people don't think that cake is bread.

What's your opinion?

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[-] oxjox@lemmy.ml 1 points 2 months ago

You asked the question, "is a cake a sort of bread" and the dictionary is explicitly stating "cake is a breadlike food".

Are you instead asking if "lots of people" is a more reliable source than the dictionary?

[-] Eylrid@lemmy.world 6 points 2 months ago

Something can be breadlike without being bread, in a similar way to how whales are fishlike without being fish.

The dictionary doesn't dictate how words should be used; it reports how people use them. Consulting a dictionary is a way to find out how "lots of people" use a word.

[-] Binette@lemmy.ml 2 points 2 months ago

No but like something being bread like doesn't mean that it is bread, just similar to bread.

this post was submitted on 17 Jul 2024

75 points (94.1% liked)

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