What does the expression egg on have to do with chickens? Nothing, actually. Martha explains why, and tells the story of how the term curate’s egg came to mean “something with both good and bad characteristics.”
Chickens give more than eggs, meat, and feathers—they give language!
post-shellular adj.— «The chameleon spends some two-thirds of its abbreviated existence as an egg buried in sand, with a mere 16 to 20 weeks allocated to all post-shellular affairs.» —“Life Is Short…“ by Natalie Angier New York Times Aug. 18, 2008...
thrashing n.— Note: Perhaps related to the British noun “thrash,” which means “a party.” «Evidence gathered from the social networking site led proctors at the university to collect five times as much money this year over last for a practice known...
egg-beating n.— «Players are never allowed to touch the bottom of the pool and must tread water for the duration of a game. In order to do so, they employ a water-treading technique called “egg-beating.” The players assume a sitting position in the...
cascaron n.— Note: Cascarón is Spanish for “eggshell.” «In late April, tiny pastel bits of a giant San Antonio party show up everywhere: trickling from your hair, embedded in the carpet under your desk, stuck to your furniture. The confetti comes...