egg Hear it!

egg¹ Definition

egg (eg)

noun

  1. the oval or round body laid by a female bird, fish, reptile, insect, etc., containing a supply of nutrients, a protective membrane, and, when fertilized, the embryo of a new individual: many kinds of eggs have a thin, brittle shell as an outer covering
  2. a reproductive cell produced by a female animal or plant; ovum
  3. the egg of a domestic fowl; specif., the liquid contents of a hen's egg, as used in cooking
  4. a thing resembling a hen's egg
  5. Slang a person he's a good egg

Etymology: ME < ON, replacing native ey < OE æg, akin to Ger ei (pl. eier), prob. < IE base *owjom-, *ojom-, of a bird (> L ovum, Gr ōion) < *awei-, bird (> L avis)

transitive verb

  1. to mix or cover with the yolk or white of eggs, as in cooking
  2. Informal to throw eggs at

egg¹ Idioms

egg on one's face

Informal embarrassment due to an obvious blunder

lay an egg

Informal to fail completely: said of a joke, theatrical performance, entertainer, etc.

put all one's eggs in one basket

or have all one's eggs in one basket

to risk all that one has on a single venture, method, etc.

egg² Definition

egg (eg)

transitive verb

to urge or incite: with on

Etymology: ME eggen < ON eggja, lit., to give edge to < egg, edge

egg Synonyms

egg

n.

  1. ovum, seed, germ, spawn, roe, bud, embryo, nucleus, cell, berry*, hen fruit*.

    Eggs commonly used as food include: hen, duck, goose, quail, turtle, fish, ostrich, guinea hen.

  2. Sizes and grades of eggs include: fancy, select, farm, ranch, western, day-old, fresh, cold-storage, large pullet, medium, small, large, jumbo, white, brown; grade AA, A, B.

  3. Prepared eggs include: fried, scrambled, poached, deviled, coddled, hard boiled, hard-cooked, soft boiled, soft-cooked, creamed, shirred, stuffed, soufflé, raw, buttered, baked, on toast, dropped, goldenrod; egg salad, ham and eggs, bacon and eggs, eggs Benedict, omelet, frittata, egg foo yong, over easy*, sunnyside up*, up*, bull's eye*, two shipwrecked on a raft*.

lay an egg*

be unsuccessful, fall flat, bomb*; see fail 1.

put <strong>or </strong>have all one's eggs in one basket*

egg Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • fertilize: For example, research into the way genes control limb development in the fertilized chicken egg provides insight into how human limbs develop.
  • boil: His brain inside his skull would start bubbling like a boiled egg inside its shell.
  • lay: The race to lay new eggs is on, for the pond may only last a matter of a week or two.
  • poach: For those who fancy a change, James will rustle up some delicious locally smoked haddock with a poached egg!
  • hatch: Lewknor School borrowed an incubator to hatch a dozen eggs.
  • incubate: The latter pair were seen to dance before the ( presumed ) female settled down to incubate the egg.

Adjective modifier

  • scrambled: Beat the eggs with a little water and stir them in as for scrambled eggs.
  • beaten: Mix in the beaten eggs, then grate in cinnamon to taste.
  • fried: In this game you can " create 76 different, real world dishes from fried eggs to cabbage meat rolls!
  • free-range: We take food very seriously here and consequently offer a range of hot and cold delights including locally cured bacon and Gower free-range eggs.
  • hard-boiled: Let's say more jolly sausage than hard-boiled egg.
  • unfertilised: Looking at cells You can see some cells with your naked eye, such as an unfertilised ostrich egg which is a single cell.

Modifies a noun

yolk: Brush the pastry case with the egg yolk mixture to glaze the pastry.

Noun used with modifier

  • easter: Chelsea Chelsea's excited group had refreshments and football Easter eggs for their first session.
  • nest: A nest egg Meaning Savings, set aside for later use.
  • ostrich: Looking at cells You can see some cells with your naked eye, such as an unfertilised ostrich egg which is a single cell.
  • quail: And there were eggs: quail eggs, chicken eggs, duck eggs and preserved eggs.

Possessives

curate: Gift from the Gods is a curate's egg really: long in technical merit, short on excitement.

Preposition: in

basket: An old adage cautions against carrying all of your eggs in a single basket.

Preposition: from

ovary: The fallopian tubes carry eggs from the ovaries to the uterus.

Browse dictionary entries near egg

  1. egesta
  2. egest
  3. Egeria
  4. Egbert
  5. Egan, Pierce
  6. egalitarian
  7. égalité
  8. egad
  9. Eg
  10. eftsoons
  1. egg and dart
  2. egg coal
  3. egg cream
  4. egg on
  5. egg roll
  6. egg-shaped
  7. egg tooth
  8. eggbeater
  9. Eggers, Dave
  10. egghead