egg

egg¹

E0053200 (ĕg)n.1. a. A female gamete; an ovum. Also called egg cell.b. The round or oval female reproductive body of various animals, including birds, reptiles, amphibians, fishes, and insects, consisting usually of an embryo surrounded by nutrient material and a protective covering.c. The oval, thin-shelled reproductive body of a bird, especially that of a hen, used as food.2. Something having the ovoid shape of an egg.3. Slang A fellow; a person: He's a good egg.tr.v. egged, egg·ing, eggs 1. To cover with beaten egg, as in cooking.2. Slang To throw eggs at.Idioms: egg on (one's) face Informal Embarrassment; humiliation: If you do that, you'll end up with egg on your face. lay an egg Informal To fail, especially in a public performance. put/have all (one's) eggs in one basket Informal To risk everything on a single venture.

[Middle English egge, bird's egg, from Old Norse egg; see awi- in Indo-European roots.]

egg′less adj.egg′y adj.

egg²

E0053200 (ĕg)tr.v. egged, egg·ing, eggs To encourage or incite to action. Used with on: The racing fans egged their favorites on.

[Middle English eggen, from Old Norse eggja; see ak- in Indo-European roots.]

egg

(ɛɡ) n1. (Zoology) the oval or round reproductive body laid by the females of birds, reptiles, fishes, insects, and some other animals, consisting of a developing embryo, its food store, and sometimes jelly or albumen, all surrounded by an outer shell or membrane2. (Biology) Also called: egg cell any female gamete; ovum3. the egg of the domestic hen used as food4. something resembling an egg, esp in shape or in being in an early stage of development5. bad egg old-fashioned informal a. a bad personb. an exclamation of dismay6. good egg old-fashioned informal a. a good personb. an exclamation of delight7. lay an egg slang chiefly a. to make a joke or give a performance, etc, that fails completelyb. (of a joke, performance, etc) to fail completely; flop8. put all one's eggs in one basket have all one's eggs in one basket to stake everything on a single venture9. teach one's grandmother to suck eggs to presume to teach someone something that he or she knows already10. with egg on one's face informal made to look ridiculousvb (tr) 11. (Cookery) to dip (food) in beaten egg before cooking12. informal to throw eggs at[C14: from Old Norse egg; related to Old English ǣg, Old High German ei]

egg

(ɛɡ) vb (usually foll by: on) to urge or incite, esp to daring or foolish acts[Old English eggian, from Old Norse eggja to urge; related to Old English ecg edge, Middle Low German eggen to harrow]

egg¹

(ɛg)

n. 1. the roundish reproductive body produced by the female of certain animals, as birds and most reptiles, consisting of an ovum and its envelope of albumen, jelly, membranes, egg case, or shell, according to species. 2. such a body produced by a domestic bird, esp. the hen. 3. the contents of an egg. 4. something resembling a hen's egg. 5. Also called egg′ cell`. the female gamete; ovum. 6. Informal. a person: He's a good egg. v.t. 7. to prepare (food) by dipping in beaten egg. Idioms: 1. egg on one's face, conspicuous embarrassment caused by one's own indiscretion or faux pas. 2. lay an egg, Informal. to fail wretchedly. 3. walk on eggs, to act with extreme caution. [1350–1400; Middle English < Old Norse; replacing Middle English ey, Old English ǣg, Old Saxon, Old High German ei, Crimean Gothic ada; akin to Latin ōvum, Greek ōión egg] egg′less, adj. egg′y, adj. pron: egg, like beg and other words where “short e” precedes a “hard g” sound, is pronounced with the vowel (e) of bet except in parts of New England and the South Midland and southern U.S., where these words are frequently said with (-āg), to rhyme with vague and plague. This use of (ā) for (e) occurs esp. in the speech of the less educated and is also heard before (zh), as in measure, pleasure, and treasure.

egg²

(ɛg)

v.t. to incite or urge; encourage (usu. fol. by on). [1150–1200; Middle English < Old Norse eggja to incite, derivative of egg edge]

egg

(ĕg)1. The mature reproductive cell of female animals. The nucleus of an egg is capable of fusing with the nucleus of a sperm (the male reproductive cell) to form a new organism. In many species, eggs are produced by the ovaries. An egg carries half as many chromosomes as the other cells of the body. Also called ovum.2. In many animals, a structure consisting of this reproductive cell together with nourishment for the developing embryo and often a protective covering. It is laid outside the body of the female.3. In plants, algae, and certain fungi, the reproductive cell whose nucleus is capable of fusing with the nucleus of a male reproductive cell to form a new organism. An egg has half as many chromosomes as the other cells of the organism. In gymnosperms and angiosperms, eggs are enclosed within ovules.

egg

Past participle: egged
Gerund: egging

Imperative
egg
egg

Present
I egg
you egg
he/she/it eggs
we egg
you egg
they egg

Preterite
I egged
you egged
he/she/it egged
we egged
you egged
they egged

Present Continuous
I am egging
you are egging
he/she/it is egging
we are egging
you are egging
they are egging

Present Perfect
I have egged
you have egged
he/she/it has egged
we have egged
you have egged
they have egged

Past Continuous
I was egging
you were egging
he/she/it was egging
we were egging
you were egging
they were egging

Past Perfect
I had egged
you had egged
he/she/it had egged
we had egged
you had egged
they had egged

Future
I will egg
you will egg
he/she/it will egg
we will egg
you will egg
they will egg

Future Perfect
I will have egged
you will have egged
he/she/it will have egged
we will have egged
you will have egged
they will have egged

Future Continuous
I will be egging
you will be egging
he/she/it will be egging
we will be egging
you will be egging
they will be egging

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been egging
you have been egging
he/she/it has been egging
we have been egging
you have been egging
they have been egging

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been egging
you will have been egging
he/she/it will have been egging
we will have been egging
you will have been egging
they will have been egging

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been egging
you had been egging
he/she/it had been egging
we had been egging
you had been egging
they had been egging

Conditional
I would egg
you would egg
he/she/it would egg
we would egg
you would egg
they would egg

Past Conditional
I would have egged
you would have egged
he/she/it would have egged
we would have egged
you would have egged
they would have egged

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	egg - animal reproductive body consisting of an ovum or embryo together with nutritive and protective envelopes; especially the thin-shelled reproductive body laid by e.g. female birdschalaza - one of two spiral bands of tissue connecting the egg yolk to the enclosing membrane at either end of the shellnit - egg or young of an insect parasitic on mammals especially a sucking louse; often attached to a hair or item of clothingspawn - the mass of eggs deposited by fish or amphibians or molluscsroe - the eggs or egg-laden ovary of a fishsilkworm seed - eggs of a silkwormvitellus, yolk - nutritive material of an ovum stored for the nutrition of an embryo (especially the yellow mass of a bird or reptile egg)roe - eggs of female fishegg cell, ovum - the female reproductive cell; the female gamete
	2.	egg - oval reproductive body of a fowl (especially a hen) used as foodeggsfood product, foodstuff - a substance that can be used or prepared for use as foodegg white, ovalbumin, albumen, white - the white part of an egg; the nutritive and protective gelatinous substance surrounding the yolk consisting mainly of albumin dissolved in water; "she separated the whites from the yolks of several eggs"egg yolk, yolk - the yellow spherical part of an egg that is surrounded by the albumeneggshell, shell - the exterior covering of a bird's eggprotein - any of a large group of nitrogenous organic compounds that are essential constituents of living cells; consist of polymers of amino acids; essential in the diet of animals for growth and for repair of tissues; can be obtained from meat and eggs and milk and legumes; "a diet high in protein"
	3.	egg - one of the two male reproductive glands that produce spermatozoa and secrete androgens; "she kicked him in the balls and got away"ballock, bollock, testicle, testis, orchis, ball, nutarteria testicularis, internal spermatic artery, testicular artery - a branch of the aorta supplying the testiclestesticular vein, vena testicularis - a vein from the testiclesmale reproductive system - the reproductive system of malesfamily jewels, male genital organ, male genitalia, male genitals - external male sex organsseminiferous tubule - any of the numerous long convoluted tubules in the testis which are the sites where spermatozoa maturegonad, sex gland - a gland in which gametes (sex cells) are producedcobblers - a man's testicles (from Cockney rhyming slang: cobbler's awl rhymes with ball)male reproductive gland - the reproductive organs of a manundescended testicle, undescended testis - a testis that fails to move into the scrotum as the male fetus develops; "undescended testicles have an increased risk for cancer"epididymis - a convoluted tubule in each testis; carries sperm to vas deferensrete testis - network of tubules carrying sperm from the seminiferous tubules to the vasa efferentiaductus deferens, vas deferens - a duct that carries spermatozoa from the epididymis to the ejaculatory ductspermatic cord - a structure resembling a cord that suspends the testis within the scrotum and contains the vas deferens and other vessels and nerves
Verb	1.	egg - throw eggs atbombard, pelt - cast, hurl, or throw repeatedly with some missile; "They pelted each other with snowballs"
	2.	egg - coat with beaten egg; "egg a schnitzel"cookery, cooking, preparation - the act of preparing something (as food) by the application of heat; "cooking can be a great art"; "people are needed who have experience in cookery"; "he left the preparation of meals to his wife"coat, surface - put a coat on; cover the surface of; furnish with a surface; "coat the cake with chocolate"

egg

noun ovum, gamete, germ cell a baby bird hatching from its eggegg someone on incite, push, encourage, urge, prompt, spur, provoke, prod, goad, exhort She was egging him on to fight.get or have or be left with or end up with egg on your face be humiliated, be embarrassed, be crushed, be put down, be shamed, look foolish, be taken down a peg (informal), be put in your place If they take this game lightly they could end up with egg on their faces.Quotations
"A hen's egg is, quite simply, a work of art, a masterpiece of design and construction with, it has to be said, brilliant packaging!" [Delia Smith How to Cook]

Translations

鸡蛋卵卵子卵细胞怂恿

egg¹

(eg) noun1. an oval object usually covered with shell, laid by a bird, reptile etc, from which a young one is hatched. The female bird is sitting on the eggs in the nest. 蛋，卵 2. such an object laid by a hen, used as food. Would you rather have boiled, fried or scrambled eggs?鸡蛋3. in the female mammal, the cell from which the young one is formed; the ovum. The egg is fertilized by the male sperm. 卵细胞，卵子 ˈegg-cup noun a small cup-shaped container for holding a boiled egg while it is being eaten. 蛋杯ˈeggplant noun a dark purple fruit used as a vegetable. 茄子ˈeggshell noun the fragile covering of an egg. 蛋壳put all one's eggs in one basket to depend entirely on the success of one scheme, plan etc. You should apply for more than one job – don't put all your eggs in one basket.孤注一掷teach one's grandmother to suck eggs to try to show someone more experienced than oneself how to do something. 班门弄斧

egg²

(eg) : egg on to urge (somebody) on (to do something). He egged his friend on to steal the radio. 怂恿，煽动

egg

→ 鸡蛋zhCN

egg

egg:

see ovumovum
, in biology, specialized plant or animal sex cell, also called the egg, or egg cell. It is the female sex cell, or female gamete; the male gamete is the sperm. The study of the ovum is included in the science of embryology.
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Egg (fowl)

A single, large, living, female sex cell enclosed in a porous, calcareous shell through which gases may pass. Although they vary in size, shape, and color, the eggs of chickens, ducks, geese, and turkeys are essentially the same in structure and content (see illustration). Inward from the shell are the outer and inner shell membranes which are also permeable to gases. The membranes are constructed to prevent rapid evaporation of moisture from the egg but to allow free entry of oxygen, which is necessary for life. Air begins to penetrate the shell soon after the egg is laid, and it tends to accumulate in a space between the two membranes at the large end of the egg. See Cell (biology)

Egg of a bird

The inner shell membrane surrounds a mass of fluid albumin which, in turn, encloses a body of dense albumin; these two types of protoplasm constitute the so-called egg white. The central part of the egg is occupied by the yolk, which contains the vital egg nucleus and its associated parts. The yolk consists of alternating layers of yellow and white yolk. The yolk, enclosed by the vitelline membrane, is held in place by the chalaza which is anchored at each end of the egg and prevents undue mechanical disturbance. See Cell nucleus, Yolk sac

Egg

the female sex cell of animals, including humans, and plants from which a new organism arises as a result of fertilization or parthenogenesis. The animal egg is a highly specialized cell that contains the stored nutrients essential for embryonic development. It usually is surrounded by membranes. Egg formation, or oogenesis, generally takes place in the ovaries. The eggs of most animals are round or oval; in insects and cephalopod mollusks they are elongated. The eggs of the most primitive multicellular animals—sponges and some coelenterates—do not have any distinctive shape and are capable of amoeboid movement.

The size of an egg varies with the amount of yolk in the cytoplasm. For example, the yolk-poor eggs of placental mammals range in diameter (not counting membranes) from 50 micrometers (μm) in voles (or 70 μm in rats and mice) to 140–150 μm in bats, guinea pigs, cows, and dogs. Among placental mammals, sheep have the largest eggs, measuring 180 μm in diameter. Human eggs measure 89–91 μm in diameter. The eggs of many different invertebrates, including coelenterates, worms, echinoderms, and mollusks, are similar in size.

By storing fairly large amounts of yolk, eggs may attain large, sometimes gigantic, dimensions. The egg diameter is about 1.4 mm in some invertebrates (some mollusks, echinoderms, and crustaceans), 4.3 mm in the platypus, 7–9 mm in salmon, and 50–70 mm in elasmobranchs. Avian eggs are also very large. The chicken egg measures more than 30 mm in diameter (not counting the surrounding albuminous membrane), and the ostrich egg has a diameter of 80 mm (the total length of the egg in the shell is 155 mm).

There is no clear-cut relationship between the size of the egg and the size of the adult organism. The eggs of humans and rabbits are the same size. The egg of an aquarium guppy, the female of which grows to a length of only 5–6 cm, is twice the size of the egg of a blue tuna, which reaches an adult length of 1.5 m. (The diameters of the eggs are 2–2.1 mm and 1–1.1 mm, respectively.)

There is usually an inverse correlation between the number of eggs produced and egg size. Specifically, animals that protect their offspring generally produce a few large eggs. Birds, for example, lay one (penguins and some birds of prey) to 22 (partridges) large eggs. Catfish of the family Ariidae, whose males carry the eggs in their mouths, lay 20 to 40 eggs measuring 17–21 mm in diameter (the largest eggs among bony fishes). Fishes that deposit their eggs in the water and show no concern for their young are extremely fecund. Many cyprinids (for example, the Caspian roach, bream, and crucian carp) deposit about 300,000 eggs, the wild carp about 1.5 million, and the cod about 10 million. The diameter of the eggs is less than 2 mm.

Polymorphism is characteristic of the eggs of some animals. Specifically, seasonal polymorphism is found in animals having a complex reproductive cycle, for example, rotifers, water fleas, and aphids. In water fleas, for example, several generations of females succeed one another in summer, producing yolk-poor eggs with a thin membrane that develop without fertilization. With the onset of unfavorable conditions, the females deposit yolk-rich fertilized “winter” eggs enclosed in a protective membrane; these eggs develop only after a long period of dormancy. Rotifers produce three types of eggs: diploid eggs, from which females are produced by parthenogenesis; small haploid eggs, which develop into males; and dormant, or “winter,” eggs, which develop into females after fertilization. Sexual dimorphism of eggs also exists. In butterflies, caddis flies, reptiles, and birds, the eggs that develop into males and females differ with respect to the sex chromosomes (female heterogamety). Rotifers and some worms are marked by external sexual dimorphism: the large eggs produce females, and the small ones males.

The mature egg has a definite organization, primarily manifested by polarity. The nucleus is frequently found near the yolk-poor animal pole, whereas the yolk inclusions are concentrated fairly close to the opposite vegetal pole. Moreover, the eggs of many animals exhibit local differences. Such differences are especially pronounced in mollusks, worms, and ascidians. In these animals the fate of the various regions of the egg has already been determined, and if the egg is divided into parts, deformed embryos lacking one or more organs develop (mosaic eggs). In other animals, echinoderms in particular, the organization of the egg is more unstable, so if the egg is divided into parts, several small but essentially normal embryos develop (regulative eggs). Mosaic and regulative eggs formerly were regarded as opposed to each other, but the differences between them are no longer believed to be basic. They appear to be caused by more or less early differentiation of the cytoplasm.

The surface of an egg is invested with a semipermeable elastic plasma membrane capable of contracting. Numerous projections, or microvilli, form on the surface (cortical) layer of the cytoplasm. In many animals the surface layer contains bodies that are rich in mucopolysaccharides and that vary in diameter from several tenths of a micrometer (cortical granules of bivalve mollusks, echinoderms, and mammals) to 5–40 μ.m (cortical alveoli of bony fishes). The bodies are arranged in one or more rows near the plasma membrane. Their contents are released from the cytoplasm near the membrane when the egg is activated. Pigment granules are usually found near the surface as well. Mitochondria, Golgi complexes (concentrated at the periphery of the egg in many animals), endoplasmic reticulum, and ribosomes are regular constituents of the egg, as they are in other cells. The cell center of the egg disappears in most animals toward the end of oogenesis. It occasionally remains, for example, in some leeches and planarians, during maturation divisions. In other cases, a new cell center is formed after fertilization from centrioles introduced by sperm or, infrequently, by new formation. Yolk inclusions are a specific constituent of the cytoplasm. The differences in amount and distribution of yolk in various animals are responsible for the different kinds of cleavage. The cytoplasm contains a large store of macromolecules, including the entire protein-synthesizing system (messenger RNA and essential enzymes), DNA and RNA polymerases, and nonhistone nuclear proteins (tubulin and others). The macromolecules are used only after the egg is activated and during the early stages of embryonic development.

Eggs in plants are discussed in EGO CELL.

REFERENCES

Wilson, E. Kletka i ee rol’ v razvitii i nasledstvennosti, vols. 1–2. Moscow-Leningrad, 1936–40. (Translated from English.)
Sokolov, I. I. “Tsitologicheskie osnovy polovogo razmnozheniia mnogokletochnykh zhivotnykh.” In Rukovodstvo po tsitologii, vol. 2. Moscow-Leningrad, 1966. Pages 390–460.
Bodemer, C. Modern Embryology. Moscow, 1971. (Translated from English.)
Boyd, J. D., and W. J. Hamilton, “Cleavage, Early Development and Implantation of the Egg.” In Marshall’s Physiology of Reproduction, vol. 2. London, 1952.
Austin, C. R. The Mammalian Egg. Oxford, 1961.

A. S. GINZBURG

What does it mean when you dream about an egg?

Eggs are universal symbols of wholeness, fertility, new birth, and rebirth (or resurrection; hence, their association with Easter). Broken eggs may present a state of brokenness in one’s life or “breaking out of a shell.”

egg

[eg] (cell and molecular biology) A large, female sex cell enclosed in a porous, calcareous or leathery shell, produced by birds and reptiles. ovum

egg

colored eggs as symbol of new life, adopted to reflect Resurrection. [Christian Tradition: Brewer Dictionary, 361]See: Easter

egg

symbol of Christ’s resurrection. [Art: Hall, 110]See: Resurrection

egg

1. the oval or round reproductive body laid by the females of birds, reptiles, fishes, insects, and some other animals, consisting of a developing embryo, its food store, and sometimes jelly or albumen, all surrounded by an outer shell or membrane 2. any female gamete; ovum

Eggs

(dreams)Eggs are symbolic of something new and fragile. They represent life and development in its earliest forms and, as such, the possibilities are limitless. At times, eggs can represent captivity or entrapment. Carl Jung said that eggs represent our captive souls. Therefore, the egg in your dream may very well represent you in the most profound sense. Are you trapped in a shell or did you break out of it and are you now free to soar?

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Egg (fowl)

Egg

REFERENCES

What does it mean when you dream about an egg?

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Patient discussion about egg

EGG

egg

Synonyms for egg

noun ovum

Synonyms

phrase egg someone on

Synonyms

phrase get or have or be left with or end up with egg on your face

Synonyms

Synonyms for egg

noun animal reproductive body consisting of an ovum or embryo together with nutritive and protective envelopes

Related Words

noun oval reproductive body of a fowl (especially a hen) used as food

Synonyms

Related Words

noun one of the two male reproductive glands that produce spermatozoa and secrete androgens

Synonyms

Related Words

verb throw eggs at

Related Words

verb coat with beaten egg

Related Words

egg¹

egg²

egg¹

egg²

egg¹

egg²