egg on

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Explanation of "Egg On"

Definition: The phrase "egg on" means to encourage someone to do something, often something that they may not want to do or something that might be risky or wrong. When you "egg someone on," you are urging them to take action.

Advanced Usage:

In more complex sentences, you can use "egg on" to describe different situations: - "Even though she was nervous, her friends continued to egg her on to try out for the school play."

Word Variants:

• There are no direct variants of "egg on," but you may encounter related expressions that convey encouragement, such as "push someone to do something."

Different Meanings:

While "egg on" mainly means to encourage, it can sometimes imply a negative connotation, suggesting that the encouragement is leading someone to make a poor decision.

Synonyms:

• Urge
• Encourage
• Provoke
• Incite
• Prompt

Idioms and Phrasal Verbs:

• "Drive someone to do something": This is a similar expression meaning to push or motivate someone to take action, often with a strong sense of urgency.
• "Push someone’s buttons": This means to provoke someone into action or to annoy them, which can sometimes lead to egging someone on.

Summary:

"Egg on" is a useful phrase for describing encouragement, especially when it might lead to risky behavior.

Academic

Verb

1. urge on; cause to act
   • The other children egged the boy on, but he did not want to throw the stone through the window

Synonyms

• prod
• incite