a rotten egg

a rotten egg

1. Someone who is thoroughly, intrinsically inclined to behave badly and cause trouble. His parents did everything they could to steer him on the right path, but I think Chris might just be a rotten egg. She started hanging out with a few rotten eggs in her school, and her grades have really suffered ever since. We could tell he was a rotten egg even at a young age.

2. childish A loser; someone worthy of teasing. Typically used in the phrase "last one in is a rotten egg," an exhortation to get people to enter some place or do something, especially quickly. Come on, we're all jumping in the lake—last one in's a rotten egg! A: "Last one in the bouncy castle is a rotten egg!" B: "Hey, no fair, you got a head start!" Hurry up, you guys! Last one in the pool's a rotten egg!

See also: egg, rotten

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

rotten egg

 and bad egg

a bad or despised person; an evil influence. That guy is a real rotten egg. She sure has turned out to be a rotten egg.

See also: egg, rotten

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

rotten egg

see under bad egg.

See also: egg, rotten

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

rotten egg

n. a bad or despised person; a stinker. She sure has turned out to be a rotten egg.

See also: egg, rotten

McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.