Illustration of egg
- 1 shell
- 2 outer shell membrane
- 3 inner shell membrane
- 4 air space
- 5 chalaza
- 6 albumen or white layers
- 7 yolk layers
- 8 blastodisc
- 9 vitelline membrane
often attributive
1
a
: the hard-shelled reproductive body produced by a bird and especially by the common domestic chicken
also
: its contents used as food
b
: an animal reproductive body consisting of an ovum together with its nutritive and protective envelopes and having the capacity to develop into a new individual capable of independent existence
c
: ovum
2
: something resembling an egg
eggless
adjective
Synonyms
Examples of egg in a Sentence
Noun
The egg will hatch about 10 days after it is laid.
the smell of rotten eggs
I bought a carton of eggs.
a batter made from flour and egg
The egg is fertilized by the sperm.
Recent Examples on the Web
Kirsty Hatcher, Peoplemag, 4 Apr. 2024
In many regions, staples like salmon eggs and corn fell by the wayside.
—Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 4 Apr. 2024
Dip cream cheese sticks into the flour, shaking off excess, then dip into the egg mixture.
—Erin Hooker, Better Homes & Gardens, 3 Apr. 2024
The numbered tickets correspond with numbers placed inside plastic eggs for the annual egg hunts, the Maryland Lottery said in an April 2 news release.
—Don Sweeney, Miami Herald, 3 Apr. 2024
Yesterday, the Texas Department of Agriculture disclosed that the outbreak had spread to Cal-Maine Foods, the nation’s largest egg producer.
—Dylan Sloan, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2024
The highly lethal form of avian influenza circulating the globe since 2021 has killed tens of millions of birds, forced poultry farmers in the United States to slaughter entire flocks and prompted a brief but alarming spike in the price of eggs.
—Andrew Jacobs, New York Times, 2 Apr. 2024
The team’s analysis revealed participants who consumed at least 3.53 ounces of whole eggs daily—about two large eggs—had significantly elevated BMD levels in their femurs and spines.
—Sarah Garone, Health, 23 Mar. 2024
Anna told me the sesame balls, egg tarts and pork turnovers typically sell out fast and won’t be made again until the following day.
—Brianna Taylor, Sacramento Bee, 23 Mar. 2024
Jim Higgins, Journal Sentinel, 27 Mar. 2024
After two armed men dressed in black enter, Gardner eggs them on despite their hesitancy to engage with her.
—William Vaillancourt, Rolling Stone, 10 Mar. 2024
But Russia will still egg the axis on, encouraging its anti-American designs and working to make its attacks more effective.
—Hamidreza Azizi, Foreign Affairs, 14 Feb. 2024
While crossing, the singer’s travel companion waited across the street, egging her on.
—Essence, 2 Feb. 2024
The five bad-mouthed birds seemed to be egging each other on, prompting staffers to separate them and send each one to a different area of the zoo.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 26 Jan. 2024
When juvenile pranksters were caught egging homes in Florida last week, the local sheriff's office used an old-fashioned solution as a punishment.
—Andrea Vacchiano, Fox News, 16 Jan. 2024
After losing in a ping pong match, the 43-year-old Average Expectations author believes his ex is egging him on by congratulating the winner of the game right in front of him.
—Julia Moore, Peoplemag, 9 Nov. 2023
Licht — with Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav clearly egging him on — cut hundreds of positions, scuttled a nascent streaming service called CNN+ and made questionable programming moves such as placing the provocative Don Lemon on the network’s early-morning program.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 24 Aug. 2023
Noun
The mom of four later shared a video of her three older kids setting out on an Easter egg hunt with their cousins.
—Kirsty Hatcher, Peoplemag, 4 Apr. 2024
In many regions, staples like salmon eggs and corn fell by the wayside.
—Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 4 Apr. 2024
Dip cream cheese sticks into the flour, shaking off excess, then dip into the egg mixture.
—Erin Hooker, Better Homes & Gardens, 3 Apr. 2024
The numbered tickets correspond with numbers placed inside plastic eggs for the annual egg hunts, the Maryland Lottery said in an April 2 news release.
—Don Sweeney, Miami Herald, 3 Apr. 2024
Yesterday, the Texas Department of Agriculture disclosed that the outbreak had spread to Cal-Maine Foods, the nation’s largest egg producer.
—Dylan Sloan, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2024
The highly lethal form of avian influenza circulating the globe since 2021 has killed tens of millions of birds, forced poultry farmers in the United States to slaughter entire flocks and prompted a brief but alarming spike in the price of eggs.
—Andrew Jacobs, New York Times, 2 Apr. 2024
The team’s analysis revealed participants who consumed at least 3.53 ounces of whole eggs daily—about two large eggs—had significantly elevated BMD levels in their femurs and spines.
—Sarah Garone, Health, 23 Mar. 2024
Anna told me the sesame balls, egg tarts and pork turnovers typically sell out fast and won’t be made again until the following day.
—Brianna Taylor, Sacramento Bee, 23 Mar. 2024
Verb
That was certainly true on Tuesday, with Watts the boisterous cheerleader egging people on with arms, eyebrows and expressions.
—Jim Higgins, Journal Sentinel, 27 Mar. 2024
After two armed men dressed in black enter, Gardner eggs them on despite their hesitancy to engage with her.
—William Vaillancourt, Rolling Stone, 10 Mar. 2024
But Russia will still egg the axis on, encouraging its anti-American designs and working to make its attacks more effective.
—Hamidreza Azizi, Foreign Affairs, 14 Feb. 2024
While crossing, the singer’s travel companion waited across the street, egging her on.
—Essence, 2 Feb. 2024
The five bad-mouthed birds seemed to be egging each other on, prompting staffers to separate them and send each one to a different area of the zoo.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 26 Jan. 2024
When juvenile pranksters were caught egging homes in Florida last week, the local sheriff's office used an old-fashioned solution as a punishment.
—Andrea Vacchiano, Fox News, 16 Jan. 2024
After losing in a ping pong match, the 43-year-old Average Expectations author believes his ex is egging him on by congratulating the winner of the game right in front of him.
—Julia Moore, Peoplemag, 9 Nov. 2023
Licht — with Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav clearly egging him on — cut hundreds of positions, scuttled a nascent streaming service called CNN+ and made questionable programming moves such as placing the provocative Don Lemon on the network’s early-morning program.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 24 Aug. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'egg.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English egge, from Old Norse egg; akin to Old English ǣg egg, Latin ovum, Greek ōion
Verb (1)
Middle English, from Old Norse eggja; akin to Old English ecg edge — more at edge
First Known Use
Noun
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Verb (1)
13th century, in the meaning defined above
Verb (2)
1833, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of egg was
in the 13th century
Phrases Containing egg
Dictionary Entries Near egg
Cite this Entry
“Egg.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/egg. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
egg
2 of 2 noun1
a
: a hard-shelled reproductive body produced by a bird and especially by domestic poultry
also
: its contents used as food
b
: a reproductive body produced by an animal and consisting of an ovum with its food-containing and protecting envelopes and being capable of development into a new individual
c
: a germ cell produced by a female
called also ovum
2
: something shaped like an egg
darning egg
Etymology
Verb
Old Norse eggja "to incite"
Noun
Middle English egge "egg," from early Norse egg (same meaning)
Medical Definition
egg
noun1
: the hard-shelled reproductive body produced by a bird and especially by the common domestic chicken (Gallus gallus)
2
: an animal reproductive body consisting of an ovum together with its nutritive and protective envelopes and having the capacity to develop into a new individual capable of independent existence
3
: ovum
More from Merriam-Webster on egg
Nglish: Translation of egg for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of egg for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about egg
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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