The term is a straightforward Modern English compound noun, combining two elements with deep Germanic roots. "Wedding" originates from the Old English concept of making a pledge or agreement (wedd), which evolved to specifically denote the marriage ceremony. "Cake" entered English from Old Norse, a common term for a baked flour-based confection. The compound "wedding-cake" logically emerged to describe the central, celebratory confection associated with marriage festivities. Its application to ornate, multi-tiered architecture is a metaphorical extension from the 19th century, drawing a direct visual comparison to the elaborate, layered structures of traditional wedding cakes.

Structure: wedding (marriage ceremony) + cake (baked sweet food) wedding: From Old English weddung (pledge, betrothal), from weddian (to pledge). A noun-forming suffix -ung. In this compound, it functions as a noun modifier specifying the type of ceremony. cake: From Old Norse kaka (cake), related to Old English coecel (a small cake). Functions as the head noun in the compound, denoting the central object.