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egg1

Syllabification: (egg)
Pronunciation: /eg/

Translate egg | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of egg

noun

  • 1an oval or round object laid by a female bird, reptile, fish, or invertebrate, usually containing a developing embryo. The eggs of birds are enclosed in a chalky shell, while those of reptiles are in a leathery membrane.
  • an infertile egg, typically of the domestic hen, used for food.
  • Biology the female reproductive cell in animals and plants; an ovum.
  • a thing resembling a bird’s egg in shape:chocolate eggs
  • Architecture a decorative oval molding, used alternately with triangular figures.
  • 2 [with adjective] informal dated a person possessing a specified quality:she was a good egg

Phrases

don't put all your eggs in one basket

proverb don’t risk everything on the success of one venture.

go suck an egg

[as imperative] informal used as an expression of anger or scorn.

kill the goose that lays the golden egg

destroy a reliable and valuable source of income.
[with allusion to one of Aesop's fables]

lay an egg

informal be completely unsuccessful; fail badly.

with egg on one's face

informal appearing foolish or ridiculous:don’t underestimate this team, or you’ll be left with egg on your face

Derivatives

eggless

adjective

Origin:

Middle English (superseding earlier ey, from Old English ǣg): from Old Norse

egg in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of egg in the British & World English dictionary

Nearby words

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