egg on

Idioms  

1. Incite, urge ahead, provoke, as in Jack is always egging me on to drive faster, or Seemingly quiet, Margo actually eggs on Donald to quarrel with his staff. This expression has nothing to do with hen's eggs but comes from an Old Norse word, eggja, “to edge.” Both edge on and egg on were used interchangeably, but today the latter is preferred. [c. 1200]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

egg on

Put a fried egg on top while you’re at it.

From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026

Their first chick emerged from its egg on Friday at 15:10 BST.

From BBC ● May 23, 2026

Bardella was at an event in Moissac, southwest France, to promote his latest book when a man broke the egg on his head.

From Barron's ● Nov. 29, 2025

Executives at UnitedHealth Group had egg on their faces on Tuesday morning.

From Slate ● May 14, 2025

“I’ve spent the last few seconds thinking this over a bit more, and I’m gonna have to pass on your offer. I think I’d rather find the egg on my own, thanks.”

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline