What does egged mean?
"Egged" is the past tense of the verb "egg," which carries two distinct meanings in modern English. By far the more common sense appears in the phrase "egg on," meaning to incite, prod, or encourage someone into action — usually something reckless, daring, or ill-advised. A friend who dares you to jump a fence is egging you on, and the word often implies that the instigator shares blame for what follows. The second sense is literal but figuratively messy: to throw eggs at a person, car, or building, an act associated with pranks, protests, and petty vandalism. Despite appearances, neither sense has any real connection to hen's eggs; the incitement meaning descends from Old Norse "eggja," meaning to urge on, while the throwing sense arose by association with the noun "egg" only later. Informal in register, "egged" most frequently surfaces in journalism and everyday storytelling.
verb (past tense and past participle of "egg")Past tense of "egg": chiefly in the phrase "egg on," meaning to incite, urge, or encourage someone to do something, often something reckless or unwise; also, to throw eggs at someone or something as an act of protest or vandalism.
- To incite or encourage someone to do something, especially something bold, risky, or foolish (almost always in the phrasal form "egg on").
- To throw eggs at a person, building, or vehicle as a prank, protest, or act of vandalism.
"His friends egged him on until he finally climbed over the fence."
"The crowd egged the speaker on, shouting louder with every pause."
"Vandals egged the mayor's car overnight, leaving a sticky mess on the windshield."
The verb to egg has nothing to do with hen's fruit — it comes from the Old Norse word for "to urge on," making "egg on" one of English's great etymological red herrings.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of egged
The verb "egg" in the sense of urging someone on derives from Old Norse "eggja," meaning to incite or goad, itself formed from "egg," the Norse word for an edge or blade — the same root that gave English the word "edge." It entered Middle English through Scandinavian influence during the Viking settlements. The unrelated practice of pelting things with eggs simply extended the noun "egg" into a verb, a usage that became established in English by the early modern period. The two verbs thus converged in identical form despite entirely separate origins.
Related word forms
How egged is actually used
The incitement sense is nearly always used with the particle "on" ("egged on") and carries a connotation of pushing someone toward trouble or mischief, often implying the instigator bears some responsibility for the outcome. The egg-throwing sense is informal and typically appears in news reports about pranks or protests. Both senses are past-tense/participle forms of the verb rather than standalone lexical items.
Easily confused with egged
"Axed" means dismissed or cut abruptly (or chopped with an axe), whereas "egged" means incited or pelted with eggs.
"Aged" means grown old or of a specified age, while "egged" means urged on or attacked with eggs.