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Easter egg

Easter egg

20 1.0
A decorated or chocolate egg given at Easter
  • noun
  • /ˈiːstər ɛɡ/
translation icon : huevo de Pascua
  • Come on outside and help the kids hunt for Easter eggs!
  • Easter egg hunt
  • chocolate Easter eggs
  • decorate Easter eggs

A Ryan Squishy figure for Jackson's Easter egg basket as well.

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Examples

  • Your dad will be here in less than an hour to take you to the Easter egg hunt.

  • This is like an Easter egg hunt.

  • Start your own little Easter egg hunt.

  • Liz plays with the kids looking for Easter eggs.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • On Easter once, I remember, it rained, so the Easter egg hunt had to be inside.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • People of England have been coloring and decorating their Easter eggs since way back in the Middle Ages.

    Blog text (5)
  • Easter eggs nearly always had something inside them: rings, bead necklaces, or sometimes candy.

    Fiction book (1997)
  • Come on outside and help the kids hunt for Easter eggs!

  • Children are invited to participate in an Easter egg hunt at 10 a.m.

  • Don't forget to look for your Easter eggs on Sunday.

Synonyms

chocolate egg
vsEaster egg
1 1.0

A sweet made of chocolate in the shape of an egg

also includes decorated real eggs used in celebrations
candy egg
vsEaster egg
  • US
1 1.0

A small sweet shaped like an egg often given at Easter

also includes decorated real eggs used in celebrations
jelly egg
vsEaster egg
  • UK
2.2

A small egg-shaped sweet made of soft jelly with a sugar coating often eaten at Easter

also includes decorated real eggs used in celebrations

How Decorative

egg-and-tongue
  • Specialized
9.8
Easter egg
20 1.0
ornamental
1 4.8

Surface Forms

Easter egg singular
Easter eggs plural

Morphology

Easter + egg

The meaning is directly and transparently built from 'Easter' (the holiday) + 'egg' (an egg), referring to an egg used or given at Easter celebrations. Although variants (decorated real eggs or chocolate eggs) exist, that variation is an obvious cultural extension so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can infer the basic meaning; similar constructions exist in many languages.

Etymology

Easter egg comes from the old custom of giving and decorating real eggs in spring to show 'new life' after winter. That's why the phrase now means a decorated egg or an egg-shaped sweet people give and hide at Easter.