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]

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

egg on

For nearly a decade, students in Kolkata's government schools have been served an egg on some days of the week, alongside rice, pulses and vegetables.

From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026

In the comment section, one fan replied to egg on the content creator, “Yes, tell us what happened with Alex Cooper thank you.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 14, 2026

The retired farmer had queued up on November 29 at a launch of Bardella's new book in the southern town of Moissac, squashing an egg on his head when he reached him.

From Barron's ● Jan. 9, 2026

Whip up pappa al pomodoro and slide a poached egg on top like a wink.

From Salon ● Jun. 16, 2025

“I thought I heard mice in the kitchen. I’m afraid there will be white of egg on the boys’ pillows.

From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck