Easter egg

American  

[ee-ster eg] / ˈi stər ˌɛg /

noun

1. a chicken egg that is dyed and often given a figure or design, or an imitation of such an egg, as an egg-shaped candy or chocolate, used at Easter as a gift or decoration.

2. Digital Technology. an extra feature, as a message or video, hidden in a software program, video game, DVD, etc., and revealed as by an obscure sequence of keystrokes or commands.

3. Movies, Television. a hidden message, as a cryptic reference, iconic image, or inside joke, that fans are intended to discover in a television show or movie.

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Easter egg British  

noun

1. an egg given to children at Easter, usually a chocolate egg or a hen's egg with its shell painted

2. a bonus or extra feature hidden inside a website, computer game, or DVD, that is only revealed after repeated or lengthy viewing or playing

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Usage

What does Easter egg mean? Easter eggs can refer to candy eggs or eggs decorated for the Christian holiday of Easter, and searched for during Easter egg hunts. In popular culture, Easters eggs are text, images, visual gags, jokes, or other content that creators intentionally hide in media for their and their viewers' amusement.

Etymology

Origin of Easter egg

First recorded in 1570–80

Example Sentences

"I put so many lyrical easter eggs in that speech that when the Midnights album came out, after that, the fans were like, 'The whole speech was an easter egg!'"

From BBC • Aug. 13, 2025

It’s an easter egg hunt where the eggs litter an open field.

From Salon • Aug. 2, 2024

Peters’ appearance as Pietro on Wanda’s doorstep might be anything from a fun easter egg to foreshadowing of what’s to come on the show and in the MCU more broadly.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 5, 2021

This barbed easter egg appears in the second paragraph of the 101-page opinion.

From Slate • Feb. 28, 2018

"It’s more of an easter egg," Lovelady says.

From The Verge • Nov. 28, 2014