cakes and ale
Festive food, drink
Cakes and ale means the good things of life—pleasure, enjoyment, indulgence.
The phrase suggests that life isn't all hardship and seriousness: Life isn't all cakes and ale, but it has its moments.
It comes from a line in Shakespeare's *Twelfth Night* and carries a slightly old-fashioned, literary flavor.
Celebratory occasion or mood
- revelryNoisy, lively celebration
- jovialityHearty, convivial cheerfulness
- gaietyLively, exuberant cheerfulness
- convivialityWarm, sociable good cheer
mirth · jollity · laughter · fun · glee · amusement · high spirits · cheerfulness
Pursuit of gratification
- decadenceMoral decline through excess
- feastingEating sumptuously together
- epicureanConnoisseur of sensual pleasures
- sensualityPursuit of physical pleasure
pleasure-seeking · gluttony · luxury · extravagance · excess · self-gratification · overindulgence · richness
Elizabethan dramatist and poet
- Twelfth NightFinal Yuletide evening
- proverbialWidely known from maxims
- figurativeRepresenting through imagery
- good timesEnjoyable life periods
carpe diem · virtuous · Malvolio · quotation · allusion · Elizabethan · proverb · expression
State of relishing something
- delightIntense pleasure or satisfaction
- happinessJoyful emotional state
- contentmentPeaceful satisfaction with circumstances
- blissPerfect, serene felicity
gratification · relish · fulfillment · satisfaction · well-being · comfort · joy · zest
Ample supply, overflowing
- plentySufficient quantity, and then some
- good fortuneFavorable chance outcomes
- flourishingProspering vigorously
- thrivingSucceeding vigorously
affluence · wealth · bounty · fat of the land · profusion · richness · well-being · success
festivity
Celebratory occasion or mood
- revelryNoisy, lively celebration
- jovialityHearty, convivial cheerfulness
- gaietyLively, exuberant cheerfulness
conviviality · mirth · jollity · laughter · fun · glee · amusement · high spirits · cheerfulness · lightheartedness
hedonism
Pursuit of gratification
- decadenceMoral decline through excess
- feastingEating sumptuously together
- epicureanConnoisseur of sensual pleasures
sensuality · pleasure-seeking · gluttony · luxury · extravagance · excess · self-gratification · overindulgence · richness · sumptuousness
Shakespeare
Elizabethan dramatist and poet
- Twelfth NightFinal Yuletide evening
- proverbialWidely known from maxims
- figurativeRepresenting through imagery
good times · carpe diem · virtuous · Malvolio · quotation · allusion · Elizabethan · proverb · expression
enjoyment
State of relishing something
- delightIntense pleasure or satisfaction
- happinessJoyful emotional state
- contentmentPeaceful satisfaction with circumstances
bliss · gratification · relish · fulfillment · satisfaction · well-being · comfort · joy · zest · pleasance
abundance
Ample supply, overflowing
- plentySufficient quantity, and then some
- good fortuneFavorable chance outcomes
- flourishingProspering vigorously
thriving · affluence · wealth · bounty · fat of the land · profusion · richness · well-being · success · golden age
- pagan ritualsSamhain, Beltane, solstice celebration, full moon ritual, Candlemas
- Pagan HolidaysSamhain, Beltane, fire festivals, Midsummer
cakes and aleabstinence
Voluntary forgoing of indulgences
austerity · self-denial · temperance · deprivation · fasting
cakes and aleasceticism
Severe self-denial practice
monasticism · hair shirt · self-flagellation · spartan living · otherworldliness
cake, bake, baking, pancake, bakery, cakes, pancakes, cupcake, fruitcake