icing

Everyday

1. Icing is a sweet topping made of sugar, often with butter or water, that covers cakes and biscuits. In the USA it is often called frosting. tree →
2. Icing is also ice forming on something, like the wings of a plane. tree →
3. «The icing on the cake» means something extra that makes a good thing even better. tree →

In the lessons

a part of baking stories; amounts of icing used, or cakes with icing counted; in cooking: icing sugar, piping icing, decorating cupcakes; in science: icing on roads and planes is dangerous; phrases: «the icing on the cake», «icing sugar»

Examples

• Each cupcake needs 20 g of icing. tree →
• She put icing on 12 of the 30 biscuits. tree →
• The cake has pink icing. tree →
• How much icing for 6 cakes? tree →
• We decorated the cupcakes with blue icing. tree →
• Mix icing sugar with a little water. tree →
• Winning the cup was great, and the medal was the icing on the cake. tree →
• Icing on the road made it slippery. tree →

Note

Usually an amount per item (a rate): total icing = items × icing per item. Carries no clue on its own. Uncountable: some icing. «Icing» (UK, Australia) = «frosting» (US).