Egg

Pronunciation

• enPR: Ä•g, IPA: /ɛɡ/, /eɪɡ/
• Rhymes: -ɛɡ

From Middle English egge, from Old Norse egg ("egg"), from Proto-Germanic *ajją ("egg"), by from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ōwyóm ("egg"). Cognate with Icelandic egg ("egg"), Norwegian egg ("egg"), Swedish ägg ("egg"), Danish æg ("egg"). The native English ey (pl. eyren), akin to Dutch ei (pl. eieren) and German Ei (pl. Eier) survived into the 16th century before being fully replaced by egg. More at ey.

Full definition of egg

Noun

1. (zoology, countable) An approximately spherical or ellipsoidal body produced by birds, snakes, insects and other animals, housing the embryo during its development.
2. (countable) The egg of a domestic fowl as an item of food.
3. (uncountable) The contents of one or more (hen's usually) eggs as a culinary ingredient, etc.
   I also determine the minimal amount of egg required to make good mayonnaise.
4. (biology, countable) The female primary cell, the ovum.
• 2013, Katrina G. Claw, Rapid Evolution in Eggs and Sperm, Many genes with reproductive roles also have antibacterial and immune functions, which indicate that the threat of microbial attack on the sperm or egg may be a major influence on rapid evolution during reproduction.
5. Anything shaped like an egg, such as an Easter egg or a chocolate egg.
6. A swelling on one's head, usually large or noticeable, associated with an injury.
7. (mildly pejorative, slang, ethnic slur), (potentially offensive) A person of Caucasian (Western) ancestry, who has a strong desire to learn about and immerse him- or herself in East Asian culture, and/or such a person who is perceived as behaving as if he or she were Asian (from the "white" outside and "yellow" inside).
8. (NZ, pejorative) A foolish or obnoxious person.
   Shut up, you egg!
9. In terms such as good egg, bad egg, tough egg etc., a person, fellow.

Verb

1. To throw eggs at.
2. To dip in or coat with beaten egg (cooking).
3. To distort a circular cross-section (as in a tube) to an elliptical or oval shape, either inadvertently or intentionally.After I cut the tubing, I found that I had slightly egged it in the vise.

Derived terms

From Old Norse eggja ("to edge").

Verb

1. (obsolete except in egg on) To encourage, incite.

Derived terms

• egg on