cake up
C1 informal separable both
In simple words
Have a thick, hard, dirty layer stuck all over something.
Literal meaning: To form layers like a cake — becoming thick and layered on a surface.
Meanings
1 C1 informal
To become covered in a thick, hardened layer of a substance such as mud, grease, or dried paint.
"His boots were caked up with mud after the cross-country race."
Grammar: separable
2 C1
idiomatic
slang
Informal: to apply a heavy, thick layer of make-up or cosmetics.
"She had totally caked up her face with foundation — you couldn't see her natural skin at all."
Grammar: separable
Usage notes
Often used to describe mud, dirt, grease, cosmetics, or other substances that dry into a crust. Frequently used in passive constructions ('caked up with mud'). Common in British English.
Commonly used with
mud grease dirt make-up paint rust
Forms
Base
cake up
I/you/we/they
3rd person
cakes up
he/she/it
Past simple
caked up
yesterday
Past participle
caked up
have + pp
-ing form
caking up
continuous
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