Easter egg

noun

plural Easter eggs
1
: an egg that is dyed and sometimes decorated and that is associated with the celebration of Easter
2
sometimes Easter Egg or easter egg plural Easter Eggs or easter eggs : a hidden feature in a commercially released product (such as software or a DVD)
3
sometimes Easter Egg or easter egg : a usually subtle callback (see callback sense 3) included to please fans
They certainly didn't disappoint …, littering the movie with a bunch of fun Easter eggs for fans of the video games and other cool inside jokes.Craig Flaster

Examples of Easter egg in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Though Monday’s goose chase ended up leading to a dead end, Swift is famous for teasing things months in advance and leaving Easter eggs for her fans to decode. Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 27 May 2025 Literature also plays a supporting role in Sorry, Baby, with an entire syllabus—Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita, Virginia Woolf’s To the Lighthouse, and Susan Sontag’s Against Interpretation, among others—scattered like Easter eggs through the film. Jen Wang, Vogue, 27 May 2025 The entire production is laden with Milch family Easter eggs both intentional and accidental. Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 26 May 2025 Key Background Swift has long teased fans with clues and Easter eggs hidden in her social media posts, CD booklets, music videos and more. Conor Murray, Forbes.com, 26 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for Easter egg

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1572, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of Easter egg was circa 1572

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Easter egg.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Easter%20egg. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on Easter egg

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!